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In this romantic drama, based on a best-seller by a female author that has been devoured by hordes of female readers, a filthy-rich 30-ish man who has shut down his emotions forms a relationship with a fetchingly unsophisticated, younger woman of modest means who is willing to tend to his needs. What starts off as strictly a business proposition eventually grows into a more personal and cozier connection.

Quick, name the movie.

You and your dirty mind are probably thinking “ Fifty Shades of Grey ,” right? Now think again and replace the explicit kink with lovey-dovey canoodling and all that bondage gear with a wheelchair. What you have is “Me Before You,” an exercise not in S&M marathons but an almost completely chaste wallow in sob cinema, the Hollywood prototype of which is “ Love Story .”

Luckily, many of the plot’s maudlin pitfalls are greatly mitigated by the film’s utterly infectious leading lady. Emilia Clarke ’s performance is winningly immersed in charming gawkiness and heartfelt sincerity while sporting a deliriously kitschy wardrobe heavy on eye-popping primary colors and loud butterfly prints. So much so, it might put you in mind of when you first witnessed the blinding incandescence of Julia Roberts' widescreen-ready smile or the delicate allure of Keira Knightley ’s cameo-locket features. 

Of course, “Game of Thrones” devotees have long been bowing down before this British actress and her impressive display of bewitching bad-assery as the silver-haired dragon-keeper Daenerys Targaryen. But she hasn’t quite broken through on the big screen yet. Instead, she proved all too capable of being as forgettable as anything else in last summer’s “ Terminator Genisys ” as the young Sarah Connor.

But only those who are allergic to adorable clumsiness and dewy-eyed sincerity will be able to resist Clarke as Louisa, a sheltered small-town girl with a big personality, too few ambitions and deep concerns for her family’s economic welfare. She even has a unique secret weapon: A set of incredible dancing eyebrows that appear to be under the spell of a snake charmer.

We all should be thankful—save, perhaps, those who voted her  Esquire ’s Sexiest Woman Alive last year—that Clarke turned down starring in “Fifty Shades of Grey” (too much nudity) and waited for this opportunity. To be fair, there of echoes of many other more edifying sources—“An Affair to Remember,” “ Pretty Woman ,” the French import “ The Intouchables ”—that reverberate through this “ Beauty and the Beast ” fantasy as it unfolds in a quaint English village. That the struggling working-class town’s picturesque views are dominated by a massive castle further enhance the sense that this is a contemporary fairy tale.

Ensconced in said fortress in his own stylish yet sterile bachelor pad cocoon is 30-ish Will Traynor, who once was a dashing financial whiz, devotee of extreme sports and bon vivant lover of ravishing women before he was left a quadriplegic two years earlier after a traffic accident. As played by Sam Claflin (Finnick Odair in “ The Hunger Games ” franchise), Will is initially toxic, filled with resentfulness and bitterness over losing his once-wonderful life. He also struggles with chronic pain and finds little joy in existing anymore. That begins to slowly—very slowly—change once lovely Lou enters his world, after being hired by his concerned mother ( Janet McTeer of “ Albert Nobbs ,” adding what layers she can to an underdone part) and father (played by a Charles Dance , a few degrees warmer than usual).

Lou is supposedly a caretaker, although she soon discovers that there is an affable male nurse about to handle the more medical-related and personal hygiene concerns. Instead, she is intended to be a ray of sunshine to dispel the storm clouds that lend to their son’s sagging spirits and boost his desire to live. With a considerable arsenal of withering sarcastic retorts at his surly disposal, Will puts up quite a defense. But one rainy day, he decides to watch a French DVD—“ Of Gods and Men ,” about Trappist monks living in war-torn Algeria—and the ice between him and Lou begins to melt after he learns she has never seen a subtitled movie before.

There are some roadblocks that aren’t as easy to overcome—such as Lou’s clearly incompatible long-distance-runner beau and the fact that Will learns his pre-accident girlfriend is engaged to marry one of his best friends. Then a rather dire agenda of Will’s is revealed, one that will not be exposed here though it is unfortunately treated with all the ham-fisted tentativeness of the worst of those Nicholas Sparks adaptations. This causes Lou to double down on making Will happy by taking him to Mozart concerts, heading to the racetrack and going on a swoony trip to Mallorca. Do they fall for each other? Mais oui .

But weep porn does what weep porn must, even though—unlike my excessive waterworks during "The Fault in Our Stars"—I found no need to dip into the promo Kleenex handed out at my screening. First-time filmmaker Thea Sharrock does an able job keeping us invested in her two main characters while punching up their emotions with Ed Sheeran and Imagine Dragons on the soundtrack and serving up some tasty supporting characters such as Brendan Coyle of "Downton Abbey" fame as Lou’s dad and Joanna Lumley of "Absolutely Fabulous" acclaim as an uncensored wedding guest.

But given that the film’s catchphrase is “Live boldly!,” it’s a shame that "Me Before You" didn’t take a bolder and more honest route in its adaptation of the novel by Jojo Moyes , who also wrote the screenplay. Still, if this flick helps Clarke get ahead in the movie biz, it has done at least one thing right.  

Susan Wloszczyna

Susan Wloszczyna spent much of her nearly thirty years at USA TODAY as a senior entertainment reporter. Now unchained from the grind of daily journalism, she is ready to view the world of movies with fresh eyes.

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Film credits.

Me Before You (2016)

Rated PG-13 for thematic elements and some suggestive material.

Emilia Clarke as Louisa "Lou" Clark

Sam Claflin as William "Will" Traynor

Janet McTeer as Camilla Traynor

Charles Dance as Steven Traynor

Vanessa Kirby as Alicia

• Thea Sharrock

Writer (novel)

Cinematographer.

• Remi Adefarasin
• John Wilson
• Craig Armstrong

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Review: In ‘Me Before You,’ a Broken Man Meets a Free Spirit

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By A.O. Scott

• June 2, 2016

A recent screening of “Me Before You” concluded with audible sniffles and even a sob or two. Why not gales of laughter or quiet snores? These are the mysteries that trouble a critic’s uneasy mind. This floppy British romance, directed by Thea Sharrock and adapted by Jojo Moyes from her best-selling novel , sits at the point where tedium, ridiculousness and heartfelt sentiment converge, separated by an all-but-imperceptible distance. You can’t really argue with someone else’s tears. You can, however, find yourself mystified by them.

Which is not to say that there is anything especially hard to figure out about this movie. On the contrary: It makes a virtue of its absolute obviousness. The first time we see Louisa Clark — known as Lou and played by Emilia Clarke — we note her brightly colored tights and surmise that she is a quirky free spirit. And she is! In contrast, Will Traynor ( Sam Claflin ), is imperious and sarcastic, both because he is an aristocrat (in an actual castle) and because an accident has left him mostly paralyzed from the neck down.

Lou, having been laid off from a job dispensing bogus nutritional advice to old ladies at a tea shop, is hired by Will’s mother ( Janet McTeer ) to care for him. “Not the physical stuff,” Lou is assured. Those duties are taken care of by an affable Australian (Stephen Peacocke). Lou’s assignment is to be cheery and pleasant. To keep Will company and interrupt his brooding with chipper chattiness. To annoy him until he falls in love with her.

Movie Review: ‘Me Before You’

The times critic a. o. scott reviews “me before you.”.

His part of the bargain is to soften in her presence and to introduce her to sophisticated pleasures like Mozart and movies with subtitles. Lou already has a boyfriend, a self-centered fitness nut named Patrick (Matthew Lewis), but as soon as you see him, you will know better than to expect a werewolf-versus-vampire rivalry for a young woman’s affections. This is not “ Twilight. ”

But “Me Before You” does live in the same “Twilight”-fan-fiction neighborhood as “ Fifty Shades of Grey ,” though without the spanking or the atrocious dialogue. (Not that the dialogue here is any good. It’s just not especially memorable, one way or the other.) The operative fantasy is of an ingénue who seduces, and is seduced by, a man who is rich, powerful and also helpless, in need of rescuing by the heroine even as she finds herself in his thrall.

The ending of this movie, though, which I suppose I’m honor-bound not to spoil, is another matter altogether. It will be described in some quarters as tragic, but this doesn’t seem quite right. For one thing, there has not been enough genuine dramatic conflict to give sad events the full, cathartic weight of tragedy. For another, the conclusion might not really be sad at all. Lou gets a lot of money and a fresh croissant. So maybe I had it all wrong, and those tears were tears of joy.

“Me Before You” is rated PG-13 (Parents strongly cautioned). Discreet discussions of death and sex . Running time: 1 hour 51 minutes.

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‘me before you’: film review.

Cinderella story meets end-of-life dialectic in a romance starring Emilia Clarke and Sam Claflin and based on Jojo Moyes' popular novel.

By Sheri Linden

Sheri Linden

Senior Copy Editor/Film Critic

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A bubbly, broody love triangle in which death is the third party, Me Before You stars Game of Thrones ’ Emilia Clarke as the caregiver of a quadriplegic, portrayed by  The Hunger Games’  Sam Claflin . Brought together by need — hers for a job, his for a friend — they’re chalk and cheese, and therefore, by the rules of the movie-romance game, meant for each other. There’s no question that Jojo Moyes’ adaptation of her popular novel, directed by Thea Sharrock , has more on its mind than such storytelling conventions. But far too much of this high-gloss tearjerker proceeds as a by-the-numbers romantic fantasy, nudging the viewer every step of the way.

The chemistry between the leads and a few finely etched supporting turns provide welcome counterweight to the movie’s formulaic progression, welcome especially for those who have seen their fair share of entries in the love-story-with-medical-complication subgenre . Those who haven’t — teens and young adults — will most appreciate the feature, but all-ages fans of the book and of cryfests like The Fault in Our Stars (whose screenwriters had at one point been tapped for the adaptation) will be eagerly getting out their handkerchiefs.

Release date: Jun 03, 2016

At the big-screen helm for the first time, stage wunderkind Sharrock takes a straightforward approach, relying on such familiar tools of the trade as the pop-song-backed montage and ping-pong cross-cutting in conversations. She reserves the film’s visual flourishes for its design elements and settings, and the drama opens with one of its most striking images: two lovers in a bed so white and fluffy it might be a cloud, or a romance novel cover. Dashing go-getter Will Traynor ( Claflin ), waking in his London dream pad beside his girlfriend (Vanessa Kirby), is starting another glamorous day.

The opening section sets up the yin-yang between thirtysomething Will and 26-year-old Louisa “Lou” Clark (Clarke) with admirable economy. In contrast to his moneyed joie de vivre , she still lives in the cramped home of her parents (Brendan Coyle and Samantha Spiro ) and, like many women in screen romances, has a boyfriend (Matthew Lewis) who’s cartoonishly wrong for her. Lou’s explosively colorful girlie getups announce her quirky vivacity — costume designer Jill Taylor has a field day with fuzzy sweaters and polka-dot shoes — but any ambitions attached to that creativity have fizzled.

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When Lou and Will meet, he’s almost completely paralyzed, two years after an accident cut short his seemingly unstoppable upward trajectory. That Will’s stoically suffering mother (Janet McTeer , powerfully understated) hires the inexperienced Lou in the first place is a testament to either the woman’s desperation or her ability to see beyond a nicely played wardrobe malfunction to Lou’s compassion and resilience. With a physical therapist (Stephen Peacocke ) tending to Will’s hygiene, Lou is expected to occupy a different realm of intimacy, as a hired friend of sorts. “You can work out your level of interaction,” his mother tells her. But the movie doesn’t quite allow such leeway for the viewer, instead underlining every exchange and reaction.

In the castle that rises above Lou’s village and is Will’s family home, she becomes an Eliza Doolittle to his princely Henry Higgins. He encourages her to widen her horizons; first step: watching movies with subtitles. The self-actualization goes two ways, with Lou gradually, predictably drawing Will out of the fortress — literal and figurative — where he’s been biding his wheelchair-bound time in sullen despair. Alarmed by the jagged scar on his arm from a botched attempt at self-destruction, Lou determines to make him fall in love with life again and cancel his pending date with assisted suicide in Switzerland.

Cue the string of storybook excursions, both local and far-flung, each one higher on the aphrodisiac meter until the ultimate island getaway ( Mallorca plays Mauritius). With their charm and good looks, Clarke and Claflin give the duo’s sublimated sensuality an undeniable charge, enhanced by the honeyed light of Remi Adefarasin’s camerawork . Clark overdoes Lou’s exuberance, though; whatever emotional complexity and uncertainties the character had on the page get lost amid the performance’s insistent effervescence. And however superbly delivered, Lou’s rant about unhappy marriages indicates a level of understanding that’s at odds with her supposed lack of introspection.

Within the extreme physical constraints of his role, Claflin works a subtler palette, giving Will’s mourning for his former self an affecting depth beyond the screenplay’s all too obvious signposts. Both leads embody the class divide that their characters have crossed, with Andrew McAlpine’s polished production design accentuating the difference between the spirited bustle of Lou’s home life and the quiet anguish of the Traynors’ well-appointed rooms.

The pointedness of the dialogue and direction can, when it isn’t detracting from the story, serve the pared-down supporting roles well, heightening smartly restrained performances that convey whole backstories . That’s the case when Lou’s crucifix-wearing mother reacts to the idea of euthanasia, when her father buoys her with encouraging words and especially in the potent silences between Will’s coexisting parents, played to perfection by McTeer and Charles Dance. A cameo by Joanna Lumley , as a stranger spouting agreeably tart words of wisdom, is entirely unnecessary. But it’s nonetheless a gratifying jolt of Lumley-ness as this villainless fairy tale draws toward its happily mawkish ever after.

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Distributors: Warner Bros., Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Production companies: New Line Cinema and Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures present a Sunswept Entertainment production Cast: Emilia Clarke, Sam Claflin , Janet McTeer , Charles Dance, Brendan Coyle, Stephen Peacocke , Matthew Lewis, Jenna Coleman, Samantha Spiro , Vanessa Kirby, Ben Lloyd-Hughes, Joanna Lumley Director: Thea Sharrock Screenwriter: Jojo Moyes , based on her novel Producers: Karen Rosenfelt , Alison Owen Executive producers: Sue Baden-Powell Director of photography: Remi Adefarasin Production designer: Andrew McAlpine Costume designer: Jill Taylor Editor: John Wilson Composer: Craig Armstrong Casting: Kate Dowd

Rated PG-13, 110 minutes

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Film Review: ‘Me Before You’

By Andrew Barker

Andrew Barker

Senior Features Writer

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Imagine “The Intouchables” with more romance and less chemistry, crossbred with a far tamer version of “Pretty Woman” so lacking in eroticism that its PG-13 rating seems unduly harsh, and you’re halfway toward picturing Thea Sharrock ’s “ Me Before You .”

Pairing a working-class British lass with an icy, quadriplegic aristocrat whose heart she’s been hired to melt, “Me Before You” would seem to boast a can’t-miss premise — class divides and medical misfortune being the peanut butter-and-jelly of tear-jerking romance. But Sharrock’s technically-sound yet workmanlike direction never sells the emotional peaks and troughs, the characters are alternately too exaggerated and too buttoned-down to come to life, and the final resolution pushes the film into morally provocative territory that it has neither the inclination nor the courage to confront.   

That said, considering the popularity of Jojo Moyes’ bestselling source novel (she adapts her own work here), and Hollywood’s bizarre reluctance to make the sort of big-hearted romantic dramas that would seem to be its most reliable date-night draws, the film ought to do solid business, burnishing the rising careers of its star s, Emilia Clarke (“Game of Thrones”) and Sam Claflin (“The Hunger Games” movies).

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Though Clarke is the clear protagonist, Claflin is the star of the film’s first reel. Here he’s cast as Will Traynor, a debonair London financier from a family rich enough to own its own castle, who spends his spare time skiing, windsurfing, cliff-diving and bedding flashy women. In spite of these high-risk pursuits, he’s horribly injured the one time he tries to play it safe: Opting against taking his motorcycle to work on a rainy morning, he’s hit by a bike while crossing the street and left paralyzed.

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Two years later, we find ourselves in an unnamed English country town, backgrounded at all times by the looming Traynor castle in the distance. Twenty-six-year-old Louisa “Lou” Clark (Clarke) has lived here all her life, helping support her large extended family as a waitress. She’s burdened with a limp noodle of a boyfriend (Matthew Lewis), who ignores her to pursue his twin passions of running and entrepreneurship; to wit, he’s introduced running laps in his “Young Entrepreneur of the Year” shirt.

Guileless, naïve and accident-prone, Lou is such a ray of sunshine that her offer to wrap up a customer’s leftover sandwich elicits the sort of reaction you’d usually see from recent lottery winners, but she’s thrown for a loop when her quaint tea shop closes down.

Heading to the unemployment office, she’s assigned a lucrative temp position at the Traynor mansion. The job, essentially, is to be a paid companion for Will, who now sports scraggly hair, a beard, and an arsenal of withering quips. As the script is a bit too quick to note, her position doesn’t require her to do any of the real heavy lifting that caring for a quadriplegic demands, with bathroom and bathing duties handled by a hunky nurse (Stephen Peacocke). No, as Will’s imperious mother (Janet McTeer) and kindly father (Charles Dance) explain, she’s there to cheer him up.

Like too many filmic depictions of good-hearted lower-class people, Lou is clearly meant to be relatably ordinary, but instead comes across as frustratingly dim, if not emotionally stunted: She is equally aghast by the notion that her caregiver job requires her to occasionally dispense medication as she is by the revelation that Will watches films that require subtitles. Yet in spite of her continually insane wardrobe and borderline ineptitude, Will eventually warms up to Lou, hoping to expand her provincial horizons, and she starts to bring a bit of genuine cheer into his sterile abode.

However, Lou soon learns the real implications of her job: Distraught by the loss of his old lifestyle and beset by chronic pain – in keeping with the film’s misguided gentility, we’re often told of his suffering, yet scarcely allowed to really feel it – Will plans to end his life at a dying-with-dignity facility in Switzerland. He’s promised his mother to spend six months weighing the decision, and she hired Lou as part of a last-ditch campaign to help change his mind. Horrified, Lou starts plotting a series of outings and luxury vacations to brighten Will’s life.

These are deep, complicated issues the film wades into, and it quickly winds up out of its depth. Aside from its inelegant way of addressing the politics of euthanasia — with the con side represented by a character, never previously identified as religious, now prominently wearing a crucifix — “Me Before You’s” admirable presentation of a disabled person as a swoon-worthy romantic lead collides awkwardly with its implicit suggestion that perhaps such a life isn’t even worth living, and the undercurrents of wish-fulfillment leave a sour taste. The skittish delicacy with which it tiptoes around the realities of quadriplegia doesn’t help; 2014’s romance “The Fault in Our Stars” was far bolder and more honest about the painful details of living with serious medical difficulties, and that was a film aimed at teenagers.

Claflin and Clarke are both effortlessly appealing actors, yet neither of their performances really click. Clarke has a hugely expressive face, but too often here she simply cycles back and forth between aggressively adorkable cutesiness and dewy-eyed pathos, as if she’s continually modeling for either a Kewpie doll or a marble statue of the Pietà. The range of Claflin’s character is likewise limited, with his attitude toward Lou shifting on a dime from condescending distaste to condescending affection.  

Sharrock, a veteran theater director making her filmmaking debut, certainly maintains an air of sweetness throughout, and several scenes throb with unexpected resonance. The dignified mortification on Will’s face when Lou recruits a gang of blokes to lift his wheelchair out of the mud is affectingly underplayed, and a late wedding scene hums with the sort of real romantic charge that goes missing elsewhere. But too many of the bigger moments play out with curious airlessness, as on-the-nose music cues from Ed Sheeran and Imagine Dragons give heavy scenes a saggy atmosphere.

But that’s “Me Before You” in a nutshell: A melodrama with soft-rock ballads where its beating heart should be.

Reviewed at Warner Bros. Studios, Burbank, Calif., May 20, 2016. MPAA rating, PG-13. Running time: 110 MIN.

• Production: A Warner Bros. Pictures and Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures release of a New Line Cinema, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer production. Produced by Karen Rosenfelt, Alison Owen. Executive producer, Sue Baden-Powell.
• Crew: Directed by Thea Sharrock. Screenplay, Jojo Moyes, based on her novel. Camera (color), Remi Adefarasin; editor, John Wilson; music, Craig Armstrong; production designer, Andrew McAlpine; costume designer, Jill Taylor; sound, Tim Fraser; supervising sound editor, James Mather; re-recording mixers, Mather, Mike Prestwood Smith; assistant director, Phil Booth; casting, Kate Dowd.
• With: Emilia Clarke, Sam Claflin, Janet McTeer, Charles Dance, Matthew Lewis, Stephen Peacocke, Jenna Coleman, Brendan Coyle, Samantha Spiro, Vanessa Kirby, Ben Lloyd-Hughes.

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Me Before You Reviews

Ableism as Romance makes disabled partners look like burdens and erasure look like love.

Full Review | Aug 17, 2021

The ultimate treatment of the heart of this story leaves us with a more bitter than sweet taste.

Full Review | Original Score: 3/5 | Mar 3, 2021

Sigh. Folks. It's 2016. I mean, seriously. Aren't we past these pathetic stereotypes by now? Can't we move away from these ridiculous disability as tragedy storylines?

Full Review | Original Score: 1.0/4.0 | Sep 1, 2020

It doesn't have anything interesting to say about its themes or characters - they all exist within a generic and simplified love story.

Full Review | Original Score: C | Jul 13, 2020

I didn't get it.

Full Review | May 1, 2020

I didn't approve of it. I think it's a bad message to be sending.

Through sheer force of charm alone, Claflin puts the audience into his moneyed and manicured corner, to wish him whatever happiness he and his chipper miss can muster.

Full Review | Original Score: C | Oct 21, 2019

The necessary dramatic 'crescendo' does not proceed naturally as it should, but in a completely automatic way, following each and every one of established clichés. [Full Review in Spanish]

Full Review | Aug 21, 2019

Sure it looks glossy and has pretty people in it but the message is horrible.

Full Review | Original Score: D- | Apr 12, 2019

Unfortunately, a handful of quality performances isn't nearly enough to salvage Me Before You.

Full Review | Original Score: 1/5 | Feb 19, 2019

The film unintentionally comes off more cynical than romantic. [Full Review in Spanish]

Full Review | Feb 12, 2019

While I expected too much of Me Before You, I still enjoyed it.

Full Review | Jan 10, 2019

Me Before You is one of the most refreshing romance movies to hit the big screen in a long while.

Full Review | Original Score: 9/10 | Jan 9, 2019

Although a stereotypical story with type-cast characters, the subjects depict the human experience and appeal to sympathetic audiences and romantics, its simplicity giving it the ability to connect to audiences on a universal level.

Full Review | Original Score: 3/5 | Aug 22, 2018

A film adaptation of a much loved book always comes with great expectations, and Shakespearean director Thea Sharrock did not let us down. This is an excellent maiden effort.

Full Review | Aug 22, 2018

Simply put, this is escapism at its worst. But who cares? Some tear ducts are in need of cleaning, and if it takes a possibly offensive and badly directed melodrama to do the job, then let it do it.

Full Review | May 1, 2018

Leaving aside the complex issue of assisted dying, one of the film's biggest problems is how much Me Before You shields the audience. For a supposed romance, it's surprisingly prudish.

Full Review | Original Score: 2.5/5 | Mar 22, 2018

How awful ... the moment you realize that everything about their relationship -- gooey, romantic junk food that it is -- is merely the lead-up to a much grander emotional manipulation.

Full Review | Mar 6, 2018

You cannot change who people are, but you can accept them for who they are, giving and taking to do everything in your power to make both lives special while they last

Full Review | Original Score: 3/5 | Dec 5, 2017

It is hard to appreciate a narrative that can only skim the surface but then again Emilia and Sam's chemistry makes you buy into their cozy world.

Full Review | Original Score: 3/5 | Nov 7, 2017

• Cast & crew
• User reviews

Me Before You

A girl in a small town forms an unlikely bond with a recently-paralyzed man she's taking care of. A girl in a small town forms an unlikely bond with a recently-paralyzed man she's taking care of. A girl in a small town forms an unlikely bond with a recently-paralyzed man she's taking care of.

• Thea Sharrock
• Emilia Clarke
• Sam Claflin
• Janet McTeer
• 618 User reviews
• 232 Critic reviews
• 51 Metascore
• 6 wins & 6 nominations

• Will Traynor

• Camilla Traynor

• Stephen Traynor

• Café Customer

• Thomas Clark
• (as Henri Kirkham)

• Josie Clark

• Bernard Clark

• Katrina "Treena" Clark

• Freddie Foster
• All cast & crew
• Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

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Did you know

• Trivia In the book, "Me Before You" Lou Clark gets a tattoo of a bumblebee. Emilia Clarke's first tattoo was also a bumblebee on her finger which she got after wrapping the film.
• Goofs When returning from the trip, there's a scene with Lou and Will at a check-in counter at the airport. When flying with a private carrier, you don't go to a check-in counter, just pass through a separate security and ID control, and a private handler takes you to your jet at the apron.

[Last lines]

Will Traynor : [Voice over, narrating the letter Louisa is reading] Clark. A few weeks should have passed by the time you read this. If you follow the instructions, you'll be in Paris on one of those chairs that never sit quite level on a pavement. I hope it's still sunny. Across the bridge to your right, you'll see L'artisan Parfumeur. You should try the scent called Papiomextrem. I always did think it would smell great on you. There are few things I wanted to say and couldn't because you would've gotten emotional and you wouldn't have let me finish. So, here it is. When you get back home, Michael Lawler will give you access to a bank account that contains enough to give you a new beginning. Don't start panicking. It's not enough for you to sit around for the rest of your life but it should buy you your freedom, at least from that little town we both call home. Live boldly, Clark. Push yourself. Don't settle. Wear those stripy legs with pride. Knowing you still have possibilities is a luxury, knowing I might have given them to you. This eased something for me. So, this is it. You are scored on my heart, Clark. You have been the first day you walked in with your sweet smile and your ridiculous clothes and your bad jokes and your complete inability to ever hide a single thing you felt. Don't think of me too often. I don't want you getting sad. Just live well. Just live. I'll be walking beside you every step of the way. Love, Will.

• Connections Featured in Late Night with Seth Meyers: Emilia Clarke/Darrell Hammond/Geoff Johns/Tim Alexander (2016)
• Soundtracks Numb Written by Max Jury & Dean Josiah Performed by Max Jury Courtesy of Marathon Artists Ltd./Kobalt Label Services Ltd.

User reviews 618

• Sep 4, 2016
• June 3, 2016 (United States)
• United States
• Official Facebook
• Official site
• Truoc Ngay Em Den
• Pembroke Castle, Pembrokeshire, Wales, UK
• Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM)
• New Line Cinema
• One Film at a Time
• See more company credits at IMDbPro
• $20,000,000 (estimated)
• $56,245,075
• $18,723,269
• Jun 5, 2016
• $208,445,075

Technical specs

• Runtime 1 hour 50 minutes
• Dolby Digital
• Dolby Atmos

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• What Is Cinema?

Me Before You : Perfectly Predictable, Winsomely British

By Richard Lawson

Something I asked myself while watching Me Before You , a winning film adaptation of the best-selling tearjerker novel, was a question I should probably ask myself more often: Would I be as charmed by this if they weren’t British?

It’s a hard one to answer definitively, but I suspect there might be something to my theory that, say, the whimsy of Love Actually , or the melancholy of About Time , or indeed the sweet sorrow of Me Before You , wouldn’t be quite as effective if the characters had flat American accents and lived in Cleveland. Which means I, and you, should take the gradually won affection I felt for Me Before You —a true weepy about the enriching, tragic love between a quirky commoner ( Emilia Clarke ) and the dashing, posh fellow ( Sam Claflin ) she goes to work for after an accident puts him in a wheelchair—with a grain of good old American salt.

To be fair to this pleasant and sad little movie, it does possess wit and style that likely transcend any accent. Jojo Moyes adapted her own novel, and though I’m told it excises a rather significant plot point/character detail, the script has a warm, gracious humanity to it. Though they're certainly representative of well-worn types, our young lovers, Will and Lou, actually feel like people, too. The film was directed by Thea Sharrock, a newcomer to film after getting a prodigy-like start in the theater (named artistic director of a major London theater at 24, directed Daniel Radcliffe in the hit Broadway-transferring production of Equus at 31)—and watching the movie, it’s apparent that there’s a thinking person behind the camera. The film, though shot in rich, saturated colors by Remi Adefarasin (he filmed Elizabeth back in 1998), has a nice sense of economy. It’s emotive, but it’s also efficient, telling an inevitable story (Will is prickly and mean at first, but he softens as Lou teaches him to love again while he shows Lou all of her unrealized potential) with a swift, confident freshness. Yes we’ve seen this kind of thing many times already, but Me Before You has makes a gentle case for doing it all over again.

The casting certainly helps. Clarke is obviously best known as the anointed, possibly megalomaniacal dragon queen Daenerys on Game of Thrones , while Claflin is probably most famous for playing trident-wielding sexpot Finnick in the Hunger Games movies. Here we get to see their softer, more sensitive sides, and though both actors have their problems—Claflin’s charm can be a bit mechanical, Clarke has a habit of overplaying her character’s guileless goodness, cutely knitted brows and all—but, boy, do they have chemistry together. Theirs is a dewy, wet-eyed rapport that could easily have been noxious and sugary. Instead, it’s mostly reined in by Sharrock and her actors, just before it crosses that treacly line. (Not always, though. Among other sins committed, in a few instances the film relies on that grotesque movie trope of lovestruck dopes referring to each other by their first and last names. No one does this in real life!) Sharrock also hired a strong coterie of supporting players to round out the film, including the great Janet McTeer and Charles Dance as Will’s caring parents, and promising up-and-comer Vanessa Kirby as an old girlfriend.

But, at the risk of spoiling things, where the movie is at its most impressive and assured is when it’s grappling—in an admirably frank manner for a movie like this—with the topic of assisted suicide. The film approaches this thorny issue with an honorable maturity and forthrightness, even if it’s all given the glowing gloss of an Instagram snap with the filter put up to the hilt. That, to me, represents something intrinsically, crucially British about the film, a pragmatic, a-religious approach that I can’t really imagine a mainstream, commercial American film taking. Though, who knows. The needle on that issue seems to have moved toward a more common acceptance, so maybe I’m once again blinded by my Anglophilia. Whatever it is, I’m glad that Me Before You doesn’t shy away from the difficulty at its center, while still giving us something cozy and romantic—and, in its own weird way, aspirational.

By Chris Murphy

By Joy Press

This is all to say, I cried at the end. Which is, of course, the whole point. Sharrack picks the perfect wistful final shot, Craig Armstrong’s score swells with ache and possibility, and everything is bathed in the golden light of bittersweet resolve. It’s potent stuff. I walked out of a screening on a drizzly May afternoon feeling just the right mix of heartened and sad, convinced of life’s fleeting beauty and longing for my own grand love affair. I also wanted to immediately head to the airport and get on a plane bound for England, even if life over there isn’t really as winsome, as warm and clever, as it so often seems up there on the shimmering screen.

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• DVD & Streaming

Me Before You

Content caution.

In Theaters

• June 2, 2016
• Emilia Clarke as Louisa Clark; Sam Claflin as William Traynor; Charles Dance as Steven Traynor; Jenna Coleman as Katrina Clark; Matthew Lewis as Patrick; Janet McTeer as Camilla Traynor; Brendan Coyle as Bernard Clark; Stephen Peacocke as Nathan; Vanessa Kirby as Alicia; Ben Lloyd-Hughes as Rupert

Home Release Date

• August 30, 2016
• Thea Sharrock

Distributor

• Warner Bros.

Movie Review

Louisa Clark is a “warm, chatty, life-enhancing presence with a lot of potential.”

That’s how the 26-year-old’s former employer, a café owner who is closing his business, describes her in a letter of recommendation after he’s forced to let her go. But despite the gaggle of glowing adjectives in that sentence, if anything, it still undersells just how exuberant, effervescent and extroverted Louisa really is.

Which are exactly the personality traits Camilla Traynor is looking for.

It’s not that she wants someone to talk to. It’s Camilla’s son, Will, who is in need of that after becoming almost completely paralyzed in the wake of a run-in with a motorcycle two years earlier. In a single, tragic moment, his dazzling career working in finance for his fabulously wealthy father (the family lives on a British estate that’s crowned by a massive castle) was cut short. As was his relationship with his girlfriend, Alicia, whom he promptly shoved out of his life. Now, most days, Will just sits sullenly in his wheelchair and mocks anyone who tries to cheer him up.

Which is exactly the treatment Louisa receives from him after she agrees to take the care-giving job for six months. What happens next is a version of the irresistible object running smack into an unstoppable force. After all, Louisa’s never had a bad day, it seems. And Will? Well, it’s been a very long time since he’s had a good one.

So long, in fact, that he’s convinced he’ll never have a good day again.

[ Spoilers are contained in the following sections. ]

Positive Elements

Louisa Clark is radiantly, sometimes maddeningly optimistic about life. And it’s not because hers has been easy. Most recently, she dropped out of college to move back home to help pay her parents’ bills, faithfully working at a café for six years while her unemployed father looked for work. But she’s hardly bitter. Instead, Louisa is a ray of sunshine to virtually everyone she meets—a character quality that’s reinforced by her struggling-but-positive parents and her sister, Katrina, who also lives at home.

Will treats Louisa so shabbily at first that she just about does decide to pack it in after the first 10 days or so of spending time with him. (She mostly serves as paid company for Will, as a kind nurse named Nathan takes care of most of Will’s medical and bodily needs.) But she doesn’t quit. And, as you might have expected, Louisa’s unsinkable, upbeat attitude eventually begins to rub off on Will. He starts smiling. Laughing even. And he agrees to go out on day trips that the tireless Louisa begins planning for him.

When Louisa learns that Will has been planning his suicide, she doubles her efforts to get through to him, suddenly realizing that her battle for his heart is a life-or-death matter. And for a time it looks as if she’s going to convince Will to change his mind by the sheer megawatt energy of her love for him. Along the way, she strongly confronts him for making what she calls a selfish decision.

Will grows to love Louisa, too, repeatedly telling her that she deserves a chance to grow and explore and “spread your wings.” He takes steps to care for her financially, and he kindly secures a job for her father.

Meanwhile, Louisa’s family supports her staunchly through her increasingly high-stakes relationship with Will. When she tells her dad that she’s failed to get Will to change his mind, her father wisely responds, “Who says you failed? You can’t change who people are.” Louisa retorts, “Then what can you do?” To which he says, “You love them.” For her part, Louisa’s mother is aghast at Will’s intention to have himself euthanized, telling her daughter, “You can’t be a part of this. It’s no better than murder.”

Spiritual Elements

Louisa’s mom wears a cross, and prays out loud before a meal. It’s implied that her faith is one of the reasons she’s adamantly against assisted suicide. “Some choices you don’t get to make,” she rightly says.

Sexual Content

Louisa wears a variety of outfits that reveal cleavage—sometimes quite a lot. She and her sister talk about an outfit (that we see) being too “booby,” and she wears a bikini at a tropical resort. While sitting on Will’s lap and “dancing” with him at a wedding reception, they joke about the proximity of her breasts to his face.

Louisa and Will kiss several times. On a holiday with him at a tropical island, she lies down next to him. He expresses how much it hurts him that he will never be able to make love to her. Also, someone jokes crudely about how a paralyzed person has sex.

Louisa and her old beau Patrick, meanwhile, have been dating for seven years, and they’re shown in bed together. Before his accident, Will is shown in bed with his lover, Alicia. (He’s shirtless, and we see her bare shoulders.)

Dialogue indicates that Katrina dropped out of college because she got pregnant. An ongoing joke between Will and Louisa references French gay porn. Louisa mocks married couples who drift apart emotionally and only have intercourse “once every six weeks.” There’s talk of bras and breast discomfort, lap dances, oral sex, “good bed baths,” and working at a hot wax spa. Will sarcastically tells Louisa that one of her colorful getups makes her look like a “leprechaun drag queen.”

Violent Content

Much of the drama in the movie turns around the question of whether or not Will will go through with his assisted-suicide plan. And in a review such as this, a spoiler in this regard is absolutely mandatory: He does go through with it, ultimately unswerving in his desire to die. He says repeatedly in several different ways that he cannot bear to live trapped in a mostly paralyzed body. And he essentially refuses to let Louisa love him as he is. “I can’t live like this,” he concludes. “I need it to end here.” And so he and his family fly to Switzerland where (offscreen) he instructs the doctors to put him to death.

We hear that Will has already tried to commit suicide and see scars on one of his wrists. A flashback shows him accidentally stepping out in front of the motorcycle. (We don’t see the impact.) With his wheelchair he intentionally rams a dresser bearing pictures of him from happier, pre-accident times.

Crude or Profane Language

About a half-dozen abuses each of Jesus’ and God’s names. One s-word. A handful each of “h—,” “a–,” “b–ch,” “d–n,” “arsehole” and “bloody.”

Drug and Alcohol Content

Characters consume alcohol (wine, beer) in several scenes. Nathan reprimands Louisa for letting Will drink too much at a wedding reception. Several conversations refer to the various prescription medications that Will needs to keep his paralyzed body working.

Other Negative Elements

Louisa, Will and Nathan go to a horse track and place bets on the race. There are jokes about “farting.” Louisa crudely lashes out at a snooty restaurant hostess.

Me Before You , based on JoJo Moyes’ 2012 novel, aspires to be sweetly romantic … and ends up being a vulgar, maddening, frustrating movie that endorses euthanasia. It feels like an unlikely mash-up of Bridget Jones’s Diary and Million Dollar Baby . In other words, we’re introduced to a delightfully spunky heroine who manages to penetrate the self-pity of a paralyzed man’s heart … only to have him capitulate to self-pity in the most extreme way imaginable: by having others end his life.

But the real worldview-rending thing here is that Will’s choice —a word we hear so often these days in the company of subjects such as abortion, sexuality and gender—is presented not as selfish and cowardly but as sacrificial, brave and even noble. We’re supposed to applaud his willingness to spare the woman who loves him the “agony” of caring for him. And, indeed, the audience I saw the film with did applaud at the end.

After all, it’s his body, his life. He can do whatever he pleases with it, right? That’s the prevailing philosophical ethos of our day, of course. And it’s reflected in the choice Will cannot be dissuaded from making here.

1 Corinthians 6 roundly counters that ideology, of course, teaching us that our bodies are not our own; that they belong to God. Every life, even one our society might deem somehow less than the best, has immense dignity because of His breath of life that sustains it. And when we presume to decide who lives and who dies—even when it comes to ourselves—we’re both playing God and violently, irrevocably demeaning the life that He gives us.

Thus, the movie’s determination to romanticize assisted suicide sends the chilling message to others who suffer similarly that their lives aren’t worth living either. That they, too, should just kill themselves.

Does that sound harsh? It is harsh when we strip away the sentimental trappings and take a cold, hard look at what Me Before You is actually saying. With all due respect to Louisa, there’s nothing “warm,” “life-embracing” or full of “potential” about it.

Adam R. Holz

After serving as an associate editor at NavPress’ Discipleship Journal and consulting editor for Current Thoughts and Trends, Adam now oversees the editing and publishing of Plugged In’s reviews as the site’s director. He and his wife, Jennifer, have three children. In their free time, the Holzes enjoy playing games, a variety of musical instruments, swimming and … watching movies.

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Review: “Me Before You” Is The New Romantic Movie Standard

Genre: Romance | Drama Directed by: Thea Sharrock Starring: Emilia Clarke, Sam Claflin, Vanessa Kirby Written by: Jojo Moyes (screenplay & novel)

Synopsis: A young woman forms a bond with a paralyzed man that she takes care of. 

“Me Before You” is the best romantic movie I’ve ever seen. I can’t think of more impactful and powerful romantic drama than this. It’s simply all you could want, not just in a romantic movie, but any movie in general. I’m IN LOVE with this film. I’m getting chills just thinking about it.

Based on the Jojo Moyes novel of the same name, the film depicts a unique relationship between a caregiver and her paralyzed patient. Emilia Clarke from “Game of Thrones” plays Louisa Clark (funny), a bubbly out-of-work girl who comes across a job to take care of paralyzed patient confined to a wheelchair. What she doesn’t realize is that the patient she will be taking care of is a handsome and wildly successful young man. What starts out as a rocky relationships blossoms into something special.

Yeah, I get it. Such a cliche plot, a girl meets a guy, they bicker at first and then they fall in love, right? Not really. The film actually goes against most romantic stereotypes and doesn’t fall into the obvious realms of meet, overcoming obstacles, and get a happy ending. Of course there will be elements that follow a romantic formula, it’s how these films are made. This isn’t as somber of a movie that it might seem to be, it’s actually quite funny and very charming.

Clarke displays her incredibly charming personality

The polar opposite personalities between Clark and Will Traynor (Sam Claflin) is what draws you in at first. She’s such a happy-go-lucky girl that you can’t help but root for her. She’s a girl with a positive and upbeat persona, that seems to have an angelic-like heart. Additionally, she has some snark and sarcasm in her that meshes well with her determined stubborn side. She looks like the pretty girl next door, but when she wears that red dress she turns into a complete knockout. Her bright and happy smile lights up the scenes she’s in. Clarke does great work with the character. She nails the essence of who Lou is. I can’t imagine anyone else playing the part of Louisa. A woman any man would love to have in their life.

Claflin is equally impressive as Traynor. At first he projects this aura of arrogance and smug wit. He’s fairly unlikeable, especially when you see all that Lou has to go through to be acknowledged by him. In a way it’s understandable, he’s in a wheelchair, can’t imagine what life is like, especially for someone that young. The thing about Will is that you see layers of his personality be peeled away as the movie progresses. There is a man that’s shielding away all the hurt and regret that he’s been living with since the accident, but this woman is showing him a side of her that gives him hope.

Claflin character Will Traynor evolves and opens up during as the film progresses

On a small scale that concept can be applied to dating. It’s difficult to date, even harder to find the right person. Lou is dating a guy named Patrick (Matthew Lewis) who is sort of a egocentric self-absorbed douche that constantly takes her for granted. The more time she spends with Will, the more she sees how her boyfriend is neglecting her. I can relate to Claflin’s character in the sense of our desires of finding and hoping to find someone that will unlock your heart and make you forget about all the previous disappointments. That special person that’s worth it all, that will be by your side no matter what, and cheer up when you’re down. That’s what we all hope to find at some point in our lives with a significant other. The story between these characters projects that exact feeling and message.

The on-screen chemistry between Claflin and Clarke is uncanny. The subtle glances, the smiles, the overall feeling they project when paired together is mesmerizing. It’s not because of the sexual chemistry between them, it’s more about the human bond they share. Treynor refers to Lou as “Clark” and while it may sound dismissive, but it turns into something really sweet and endearing. That’s exactly what makes this movie so spectacular.

The connection between the actors and characters is one of a kind

In most romantic movies when the characters start falling for each other there is this insatiable physical passion consisting of a lot of kissing and eventually sex. What separates this film from all the others is that it doesn’t use physical intimacy as a crutch. They have two kissing scenes and don’t have sex, at least it’s not shown. Not that he can’t because he’s disabled. She actually stays faithful to her douchy boyfriend Patrick. Instead of going the easy physical and sexual route, the film focuses on the personal and emotional connection between Lou and Will. I appreciated that, it’s rare you see that in films these days. That tend to need to cram as much sex to a movie as possible.

The film looks so simple, yet spectacular. The scenic shots of the Pembroke Castle, and the picturesque Wales countryside makes it an immediate bucket list destination upon seeing the film. The dialogue is so well-written, probably due to the fact that Moyes not only wrote the novel, but the screenplay for the film also. Movies get a bad rep for not being honest to the book versions they are inspired by, but to have the actual writer of the novel write the screenplay was a fantastic choice. The collaboration with first time director Thea Sharrock lends the film a female perspective that’s both engaging and personal. The dialogue is clever and smart. The lines seem authentic and fitting to what the characters would say. The humor is one of the underrated parts of the film that might get overlooked in all the heavy emotional context. It’s as uplifting and hopeful of a movie as it is sad.

The soundtrack for the movie blends in with the storyline as well as a soundtrack could. X Ambassadors “Unsteady” is the theme song for the film. They couldn’t have picked a better choice for a song.

Other songs that appear in the film include: Ed Sheeran’s “Photograph”, Imagine Dragons “Not Today” and Jesse Ware’s “Till the End”. All fantastic musical choices to represent the film. I will in love with the soundtrack as well as the movie.

Honestly, nothing. I can’t find anything negative about this film to write about. It’s as close to perfect of a film as you get.

This is a guaranteed tearjerker, and in the best way possible. The story is so powerful, honest and emotional that makes it impossible not to cry, unless you aren’t human. It’s a beautiful film. Creating real tears and feelings is all you can ask and hope a movie can make you feel. Falling in love with the characters and immersing myself to the story wasn’t hard. I was draining tears for two hours and I loved every minute of the emotions this film made me feel. Not having read the book, I was fairly surprised with the non-cliche ending. I was taken back by it, but pleased with the honest nature of the film staying true to itself.

The story is very powerful and emotional

Undoubtedly this is my favorite film of the year and the best romantic film I’ve ever seen. “The Notebook” seems to be the romantic movie standard to many people, but this is just a much better and authentic story. Love has no boundaries or restrictions. The central message of the movie hits home. It’s about appreciating moments in life, big or small. Living your life to the fullest. The acts of kindness and selflessness are breathtaking. “Me Before You” is the most impactful and emotionally stimulating movie in years, also the best one in years. I’ll most definitely be seeing it again, but don’t have me to be the one, before you.

Rating: PG-13 Runtime: 1 hr 50 min Release Date: June 3, 2016. (USA) For more movie news follow me on Twitter @JimRko

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Me Before You

By Peter Travers

Peter Travers

In movie weepies, from last century’s Love Story to the millennial likes of The Fault in Our Stars and anything by Nicholas Sparks, death is the ultimate aphrodisiac. Just get a load of Me Before You. I watched the film version of Jojo Moyes’ 2012 bestseller surrounded by women who laughed through their tears and vice versa. The few dudes in attendance sat stoically, resigned to their fate or maybe holding back their feelings. Surprise: Me Before You isn’t an unduly painful endurance test.

For that, thank the two captivating actors cast as the doomed lovers. Emilia Clarke is best known as the blond, dragon-taming Khaleesi on Game of Thrones. But here she plays brunette, plain-Jane Louisa “Lou” Clark, from a rowdy, working-class British family. Lou becomes the caretaker for blue-blood quadriplegic Will Traynor, played with winning charm by Sam Claflin of The Hunger Games franchise. Will is an impossibly handsome London financier who was paralyzed two years ago when a motorcycle accident ended a lifestyle that would have qualified him for the best season ever of The Bachelor. His wealthy family owns the British castle right over the hill from Lou’s humble abode.

Chatty, dimpled Lou, whose wardrobe of Minnie Mouse stripes and polka dots would send fashionistas into a shock coma, is improbably hired by Will’s mum (Janet McTeer, restrained and remarkable) to distract her son from offing himself at an assisted-suicide clinic in Switzerland. Not since Julia Roberts tried to smile Campbell Scott back to life in 1991’s dismal Dying Young has an actress had to grin like a maniacal cartoon character in the face of the Grim Reaper. Yet, Clarke pulls it off, exuding natural warmth and humor in a part constructed from artificial sweeteners.

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OK, she could have twinkled less. But the actress is genuinely endearing, as is the admirably dry-eyed and acid-tongued Claflin. He teaches Lou about Mozart and subtitled movies and admits to a weakness for Michael Bay’s Armageddon (he lost me there). Will thinks Lou’s clothes are ridiculous but falls — as he must — for the real her. A few moments allow both actors to register strongly. I’m thinking of a scene in which Will whirls Lou around a dance floor in his wheelchair. Peering at her neckline, he says, “you wouldn’t let me near those breasts if I wasn’t in this chair.” The two share a few PG-13 kisses as Lou tries to show Will the possibilities in  choosing life. But the movie keeps averting its eyes when things get uncomfortable about the tangle of sex and frustration. Like the book by Moyes, who wrote the script, the film glosses over suffering with beauty. The messier duties of caring for Will are handled by male nurse Nathan (Stephen Peacocke), also a looker. Everyone is gorgeous and impossible not to love.

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If I seem taken aback by what is really no more than typical Hollywood twaddle, it’s because Me Before You is the feature film debut of Thea Sharrock, a leading light in the British theater and the last person you’d expect to go mucking around in paint-by-numbers tearjerking. A leading U.S. Disability Organization has criticized the film for implying that the millions of people with significant disabilities currently leading fulfilling, rich lives might be better off committing suicide. I don’t think Me Before You does that. But it also doesn’t grapple  deeply enough with the core questions it raises, settling for telling a sob story that will go down easy at the box office. Still, you can’t blame audiences too much for being seduced by two shining young stars in a movie romance that hits the spot, bitter and sweet.

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Movie Review: Me Before You (2016)

• Vincent Gaine
• Movie Reviews
• No responses
• --> June 1, 2016

Me Before You belongs to a much-maligned genre. It features young adults and is based on a novel aimed at that demographic (like “The Fault in Our Stars” and “ Twilight ”); its focus is a young woman’s experience of a complicated relationship with her fellow generic archetype (like “The Notebook” and “ Dear John ”); the relationship features some highly emotional moments (like “The Fault in Our Stars” and “The Notebook”); it manipulates tears out of its audience through heartbreaking scenarios and pouring on the agony (like, you get the idea). It therefore fits the bill for a modern day weepie, a genre that is disparaged for rather dubious reasons.

Criticized as “women’s cinema” or (worse) for “girls,” the weepie has a reputation for frivolity, excessive emotion and somehow unhealthy manipulation. There are severe problems with the gender attitudes in this view, suggesting that films for women are somehow less worthy of critical attention than other films, presumably for men. Bombastic action films aimed at teenage boys also come in for a lot of stick, but that criticism is closely tied to age — either boys grow out of bombastic action films or the adult men who watch them have failed to mature. The idea that weepies are a lower genre aimed at women of any age is another way for patriarchal hegemony to demean women and characterize them as the weaker sex, open to emotional manipulation whereas men are intellectual, resistant and wise (provided they grow up and stop enjoying robots and superheroes).

When subjected to analysis, these views are rapidly exposed as utter excrement. Films aimed at an ostensibly “male” audience are also highly manipulative, as are potentially “intellectual” films. Furthermore, men can cry at tragic romances as well, as I can wholeheartedly and unashamedly report was the case during my viewing of Me Before You . But I also laughed, as Thea Sharrock’s film of Jojo Moyes’ screenplay balances wit and warmth with the worries and whimpers. All films are manipulative, and the question is whether a film is effective and not exploitative. When a character is disabled — Will Traynor (Sam Claflin, “ The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 2 ”) is paralyzed below the neck — exploitation is a genuine risk: Are we being presented with a disabled character solely to feel sorry for them? Furthermore, there are consistent problems with the depiction of disabled people on screen, such as presenting their disability as an insurmountable burden to a meaningful life, or having a person with a disability played by an able-bodied actor. Regrettably, Me Before You does not address these problems and in some ways contributes to them.

Problems of representation aside, Me Before You does work as an emotional drama. The film does not simply present Will’s situation as tragic because he is paralyzed, but ensures that the viewer’s sympathy is engendered by his constant mental anguish, anguish that the viewer can at least sympathize wit even if they have no comparable experience. Crucially, we sympathize with him at the same rate as Lou Clark (Emilia Clarke, “ Terminator Genisys ”). As Lou learns more about Will, his past and present situations, she and the viewer come to understand his suffering. Clarke therefore carries the dramatic weight of the film, and her engaging performance includes just the right amount of verve and (sorry for using this term) bubbliness. Lou is something of an archetype, an English “rose” who makes a great cup of tea, dresses garishly, loves her family and is loyal to her boyfriend Patrick (Matthew Lewis, “ Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2 ”), despite Patrick’s blatant disregard and de-prioritization of her. But as with Will, there is much more to her than these traits. Her wardrobe especially is a source not only of comedic delight, but touching personal history and narrative development; a pair of tights serves provides a particular highlight.

Other archetypal features are the class barriers between Lou and Will. He comes from immense wealth and his family have built a fully equipped annex for him; she has a working class background and lives with three generations in one house. There is even a reference to contemporary economics as her father is out of work and early in the film she is made redundant because the quaint café where she initially works closes down. Whereas the recent “ Testament of Youth ” was stodgy and stilted in its Englishness, Me Before You makes a virtue of its national identity, with a quirky, self-deprecating humor that provides a powerful contrast to the heart-rending moments. Sharrock paces the film carefully, allowing time for the supporting cast to breathe, including Janet McTeer (“ Insurgent ”) and Charles Dance (“ Child 44 ”) as Will’s parents Camilla and Stephen, Jenna Coleman (“Doctor Who” TV series) as Lou’s sister Treena and a great turn from Stephen Peacocke (“ Hercules ”) as Will’s (bewilderingly Antipodean) physical therapist Nathan. The Director of Photography, Remi Adefarasin, lenses the film in seemingly natural light, especially the gorgeous Pembrokeshire countryside and Pembroke Castle (part of the Traynor estate, of course). The charming English environment and winning characters create a sense of place and community where the viewer can feel at home, or at least enjoy their visit. As a result, as events become increasingly unhappy, the viewer continues with the characters in this comfortable environment, able to feel and indeed share their pain.

In addition, and despite its problems with portraying disability, Me Before You is encouraging from a gender perspective. Both writer and director are women, and the central narrative arc is of a woman whose identity is defined neither by relationship nor work. Both these aspects are central to the film, but Me Before You also acknowledges wider horizons and the difficulties of social constraints. While there are aspects of the film that are problematic, there is also much to enjoy. Just remember your tissues.

Tagged: caretaker , England , friendship , novel adaptation , relationship

Dr. Vincent M. Gaine is a film and television researcher. His first book, Existentialism and Social Engagement in the Films of Michael Mann was published by Palgrave MacMillan in 2011. His work on film and media has been published in Cinema Journal and The Journal of Technology , Theology and Religion , as well as edited collections including The 21st Century Superhero and The Directory of World Cinema .

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Me Before You Review

TO LIVE BOLDLY

Since time immemorial in the cinematic world of movies, the romance genre has grown and flourished, engaging audiences and viewers with sweeping narratives of all things about love and the tender matters of the heart. Whether star-crossed lovers, reconnected childhood sweethearts, or the “fated chance” meeting of two individuals, romantic movies have span the ageless tapestry of moviemaking and producing some timeless treasures and some fan-favorite gems, including The Notebook, Titanic, Gone with the Wind , Breakfast at Tiffanys , Cascablanca , and many others. Now Warner Bros and director Thea Sharrock present the current moviegoer audience with the movie Me Before You , based on the book by author Jojo Moyes. Does this feature film find love or is it’s a brokenhearted mess?

Louisa Clarke (Emilia Clarke) is a gentle and perky young woman who’s having trouble securing stable employment that’s best suited for her talents, pressured to earn by her family to keep food on the table. By chance, an opportunity presents itself as Lou is offered a position as a caretaker for Will Traynor (Sam Claflin), a quadriplegic who’s perfect and privilege life with then girlfriend Alicia (Vanessa Kirby) was taken away from him after a horrible accident. Choosing to isolate himself while his parents, Camilla (Janet McTeer) and Stephen (Charles Dance), strive to support his new reality of being confined in a wheelchair, Will is immediately cold and distance to Lou, rejecting her bubbly and quirky personality.  Lou, determined to win over her charge, tries to connect with Will through various activities and simple conversations, eventually (over time) discovering feelings for Will as he goes through a difficult but important decision-making process concerning his future.

THE GOOD / THE BAD

As a personal taste in movies, the romance genre isn’t my forte. I’m not bashing the genre and its catalogue of movies, it’s just not my “preferred” choice of movie to watch (give me an animated, action, or Marvel blockbuster over a romance movie). Still, I seeing several of the big / iconic ones like Titanic , The Notebook, Roman Holiday , Gone with the Wind , etc. I even tried my hand at reviewing one last year when I saw The Age of Adaline. So usually seeing a romantic flick isn’t on my “to do list” of seeing movies. Which brings me to me seeing Me Before You . Of course, when I first saw the trailer, I was intrigued because of all the recognizable actors and actresses in the movie. Since the movie was based off of a book, I then decided to read the book (I usually try to make a strong emphasis to do so) and took my mom to go see the movie as a late “Mother’s Day” present. As it turns out, I probably liked it a little bit more than she did. While the movie does have its faults, Me Before You is still a present feature to fall in love with.

Thea Sharrock, who has previously TV episodes for The Hollow Crown and Call the Midwife, makes her feature film directorial debut with Me Before You. For the most part, Sharrock does a pretty good job with the movie, establishing Will’s life before his tragic accident in the film’s opening scene and then quickly shifts to Louisa’s life as the kind-hearted person who is seeking a job employment. Like all romance movies, the two lovers meet and fall in love with one another and Sharrock gives her two actors (Clarke and Claflin) a lot of time to do so, sharing the juxtaposition of their lifestyles and personas (Louisa is eccentric, perky, and from a working class family, while Will is melancholy, sarcastic, and from a wealth privileged family). I do have to commend Jill Taylor, the film’s costume designer, for her work on this feature. The outfits that she made for Clarke’s Louisa is truly outstanding with different variations of it (big kudos). Another person I have to mention is the film’s cinematographer Remi Adefarasin who presented the feature with sweeping cameras angles and position. In all honesty , Me Before You is beautifully crafted as a theatrical film.

As said above, Me Before You is adapted from the book of the same name by author Jojo Moyes. Moyes, who has written 13 novels so far, also lends a hand with the film, penning the script for the movie. However, its kind of a mixed bag of sorts. Yes, the script hits a lot of the familiar scenes from the movie (both joyfully and sad), but the movie fumbles in some of its storytelling. Most notable is in the character of Will. While he is understandably negative (a little bit of a “Debbie Downer”) and sarcastic temperament towards Louisa’s overall perkiness, his attitude, after a while, seems to be on the up and up with her new caretaker companion. Meaning, there’s no conflict between him and Lou as they both fall in love with each other as both characters seem to fall in love with each other right off the bat (beyond a couple of scenes of the two not getting along).

Also, like a lot of “page to screen” movies, the film seems to omit several scenes from the book that probably could’ve been beneficial towards this theatrical adaptation. One particular is Lou’s investigation into understanding quadriplegic, which the movie had the platform to speak about this, but elects not to. In short, while the movie isn’t syrupy and sappy like a Nicholas Spark’s film adaptation, Me Before You could’ve been better in the script department, which is strange as the author of the book wrote the movie’s screenplay.

Like a lot of romance movies, the two central characters (the two who fall in love) are usually the main focal point in the film’s narrative. Luckily, Sharrock and her crew selected two fine individuals to play Louise Clarke and Will Traynor. Emilia Clarke, most recognizable from HBO’s Game of Thrones , is incredible as Louisa Clarke. She’s perky and bubbly and completely nails the character, capturing an extremely endearing persona that you actually care for (I certainly did). It’s a great role for Clarke to perform (a role that’s suited better for her than her one in Terminator: Genisys ) and something completely different from her commanding role as Daenerys Targaryen from Game of Thrones . Opposite Clarke is Sam Claflin as Will Traynor. Claflin, most notable from Starz’s television min-series Pillars of the Earth and The Hunger Games movies, does good work, but (to me) I think Clarke does a better job (again another problem with the script). Claflin as natural charm and, when the script allows him to be, expresses it vividly through his persona of Will, a man tortured by what happened to him. Still, it helps that both Clarke and Claflin play off of one another, making their chemistry with each other believable, using their talents to make Me Before You breezy and buy into their romantic relationship.

In supporting roles, Me Before You has talented group that play the story’s minor characters. Naturally, with a movie focused on its two central characters falling love, the minor characters are, more or less, pushed to the wayside and are simply there to strengthen two protagonists or help drive the narrative forward. Thus, these characters are mostly “underserved in the movie’s grand scheme”, but still are good because of the actors and actresses that play them. This includes Harry Potter alum Mathew Lewis as Louisa’s fit fanatic boyfriend Patrick, Samantha Spiro and Downton Abbey alum Brendan Coyle as Louisa’s working class parents (Josie and Bernard Clark), Doctor Who star Jenna Coleman as Louisa’s sister Katrina Clark, Janet McTeer and Charles Dance (another Game of Thrones star or rather alum) offer a sympathetic dynamic as Will’s parents (Camilla and Stephen Traynor), and Stephen Peacocke as Will’s male nurse assistant Nathan. As I said, all are good actors and actresses, but their characters are merely devices (whether story or characters devices) to move things along, which is shame because I do like all of them.

FINAL THOUGHTS

Love, loss, and living boldly is the mantra found in the movie Me Before You. Director Thea Sharrock feature is a movie that really tugs on the heartstrings and presents itself to a true “tear-jerker” for viewers everywhere. While the movie isn’t completely outstanding, with some noticeable problems in storytelling direction (formulaic) and several others, Me Before You is still enjoyable, with enough love and care put into it making the movie as well as a talented cast (especially in Emilia Clarke). Personally, I liked it. Yes, it was formulaic and there could’ve been several changes that could’ve made the movie better, but, in general, the movie was good (and that’s speaking from someone who really doesn’t like romance “tear-jerker” movies). Thus, I would recommend this movie. While it isn’t a sweeping epic like Titanic or memorable like The Notebook , but Me Before You succeeds in letting your heart swoon and swell with pleasant endearment as you (the viewer) follow the relationship between Louisa Clarke and Will Traynor.

3.8 Out of 5 (Recommended)

Released on: june 3rd, 2016, reviewed on: june 8th, 2016.

Me Before You  is rated PG-13 for thematic elements and some suggestive material

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Hey There, you got a beautiful blog here dear, and that too on movies, my favourite pastime. 😊 I am a total movie buff, and love to watch movie that are made on books. I read the novel, n saw the trailer, yet to read this movie. To be true the book was so heartbreaking that I am kinda wary to go see the movie, I m highly sensitive to issues like death. But you have put in so much effort in giving the readers a panorama review of the movie. Keep up the fantastic work. ✌🏻️🤘🏻👍🏻👌🏻

Hey, there. Thanks for the wonderful comment. I’m truly honored. I too the read the book and I did enjoy the movie. Clarke was excellent in the film and the movie is well-made. Much better than a standard Nicholas Spark adaptation.

Hi, you’re most welcome my dear. It was a pleasure to read that article. Yes, it was way better than many book adaptations. And the sentiment in there was priceless. Keep up the good work and keep smiling always. Happy Winter. ❄️🌹❄️😊👍🏻

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In  Me Before You , carefree daredevil Will Traynor's (Sam Claflin) life drastically changes after he's in an accident that paralyzes him from the waist down. After two years confined in a wheelchair, Will has developed a very poor (and bitter) attitude towards his parents. In an attempt to turn things around, Will's family places a help ad for a caretaker - someone who will be a companion to their son and hopefully cheer him up.

After losing her job at a café, Louisa Clark (Emilia Clarke) comes across the opening and is hired, despite having limited qualifications. Turned off by Will's pessimistic outlook on life, but desperately needing the money to support her family at home, Louisa dedicates herself to her new line of work and tries to positively impact Will's life so he believes that it is still worth living - even though he can no longer do the things he was accustomed to.

Adapted from the novel by Jojo Moyes,  Me Before You attempts to be the next great tear-jerking romantic drama, but it ultimately falls short of its aspirations. The chemistry between Clarke and Claflin is wasted due to a narrative that doesn't emotionally resonate as well as it should, as the plot feels more like going through the motions of clichés rather than earned developments.

The screenplay, which was also written by Moyes, is arguably the film's weakest link. In particular, the introduction to Will's character is mishandled. While he is understandably sarcastic and negative at the beginning, these traits are dialed up in such a way during the first act that Will comes across as borderline unlikable. If audiences had spent more time with Will prior to his accident, he may have been set up as a more sympathetic lead than presented. Unfortunately, viewers barely get to know him or what his previous life entailed (save for a short sequence), meaning it's difficult to tell if Will is merely deflecting due to his condition. As a result, the relationship that forms between Louisa and Will could be difficult to buy into for some, since the "turn" in their dynamic just happens for the sake of the plot - as opposed to feeling like a natural progression.

That said, when Clarke and Claflin are together, the two play off each other very nicely. Director Thea Sharrock does a good job of establishing the stark contrast between the duo (see: Louisa's home vs. Will's estate). Clarke shines as the bubbly and kind-hearted Louisa, following the classic fish out of water archetype as she adjusts to working with the wealthy Traynor family. Claflin is also solid as Will, a man obviously tortured by what has happened to him. When the script allows it, the actor can play into his natural charm, and there are certain beats that pay off along the way. The duo elevates the final film, using their talents to make  Me Before You feel breezy through most of the running time.

In a film like this, it's expected for the protagonists to get most of the screen time, but Sharrock spends perhaps a little  too much time with them. Portions of the supporting cast are greatly underserved, especially Matthew Lewis as Louisa's boyfriend, Patrick. He's more of a plot device than a real person, there primarily to give the movie a love triangle element that really isn't needed. At times, the script seems to forget Patrick exists, and only uses him when it needs to. Actors such as Samantha Spiro, Brendan Coyle, and Jenna Coleman are decent as Louisa's family, but they are likewise given very little to do outside of serving as support for the overwhelmed Lou. On the flip side, Janet McTeer and Charles Dance are perhaps the film's most sympathetic characters as Will's parents, conveying the pain any caring mother and father would feel in this kind of situation. Stephen Peacocke is also nice as Nathan, Will's nurse who doubles as a good friend.

Me Before You is victim to some glaring tonal shifts that may jar the viewer. Some of the interactions between Louisa and Will are played for laughs (see: a bit at a horse racing track), but when the film embraces its more dramatic elements, it goes too far in a few places. Finding that right kind of balance isn't easy here, and Sharrock deserves credit for trying, but the film has some difficulties working with its sensitive subject matter. The darker third act may have hit as hard as intended if the blossoming romance had more of an engaging hook, but the places it goes may leave certain moviegoers wondering what the point of the story was.  Me Before You has come under fire by members of the disabled community, with the portrayal of Will being the main criticism. Depending on how one views it, his arc either comes across as unearned or is a fitting end to the story as set up - but neither is particularly rewarding.

In the end,  Me Before You 's reliance on formula prevents it from being as compelling as it could have been. Clarke and Claflin make for a strong couple, but the material they're working with undercuts the film's full potential. It certainly has its moments, but the themes and messages ultimately fall flat and don't connect with the audience. While those looking for a reprieve from big budget summer tentpoles may find something of value here, moviegoers outside of the target demographic could be left unsatisfied.  Me Before You is very middle-of-the-road and doesn't succeed in all of its goals to be a memorable endeavor.

Me Before You is now playing in U.S. theaters. It is 110 minutes long and is Rated PG-13 for thematic elements and some suggestive material.

Let us know what you thought of the film in the comments below!

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Me before you, common sense media reviewers.

Touching but manipulative romantic drama about life, death.

A Lot or a Little?

What you will—and won't—find in this movie.

You can't control what someone else does, thin

Louisa is deeply empathetic and optimistic; she pr

A man is hit by a motorcycle (the accident isn'

The movie opens with a couple in bed, kissing; his

Words used include "s--t," "hell,&q

Products/brands seen include Apple/Mac, Subaru, Ad

Social drinking, occasionally to excess (no seriou

Parents need to know that Me Before You is a romantic drama based on Jojo Moyes' moving novel about a young woman (Emilia Clarke) in a tiny English town who takes the job of caring for an unhappy man (Sam Claflin) left paralyzed after being hit by a motorcycle. Expect some swearing (including "s--t,…

Positive Messages

You can't control what someone else does, thinks, or feels; you can simply love them and have compassion for them. Also: Make the most of your life, because it's the only one you've got. Always be open to new experiences, and keep an open mind when dealing with difficult people. ( Possible spoiler! ) Will represents a view that life isn't worth living if you're disabled, which many find problematic and/or offensive. But Lou fights hard to promote the opposite message.

Positive Role Models

Louisa is deeply empathetic and optimistic; she prefers to look on the bright side of life, even when it's actually dreary and tragic. Will, despite his melancholy and frequent rudeness, eventually opens himself up to friendship and love, though some viewers may ( possible spoiler! ) take issue with the fact that he believes that life isn't worth living if you're disabled. Lou and Will's parents' want what's best for their kids, and their love for them is clear. Patrick means well and comes off more sympathetically here than he did in the book.

Violence & Scariness

A man is hit by a motorcycle (the accident isn't shown but is heard). A glimpse of wrist scars hints at a suicide attempt. A main character frequently suffers illness and painful episodes. Some arguing/confrontation.

Did you know you can flag iffy content? Adjust limits for Violence & Scariness in your kid's entertainment guide.

Sex, Romance & Nudity

The movie opens with a couple in bed, kissing; his naked chest and her naked side are shown. A couple of other kisses, and a few allusions to sex (including non-disabled characters pondering the logistics of quadriplegic sex) and brief references to porn and a lap dance. Talk of a woman's form-fitting dress being "too booby"; a couple of other shots of/references to cleavage. A shaving scene feels very intimate.

Did you know you can flag iffy content? Adjust limits for Sex, Romance & Nudity in your kid's entertainment guide.

Words used include "s--t," "hell," "stupid," "ass," "bloody," "swear to God," "shagging," "bitch," "idiot," "sod it," "a--hole," "damn," "tossers," "piss off," "Jesus" (as an exclamation)

Did you know you can flag iffy content? Adjust limits for Language in your kid's entertainment guide.

Products & Purchases

Products/brands seen include Apple/Mac, Subaru, Adidas.

Drinking, Drugs & Smoking

Social drinking, occasionally to excess (no serious consequences). Will must take a lot of prescription medications.

Did you know you can flag iffy content? Adjust limits for Drinking, Drugs & Smoking in your kid's entertainment guide.

Parents Need to Know

Parents need to know that Me Before You is a romantic drama based on Jojo Moyes' moving novel about a young woman ( Emilia Clarke ) in a tiny English town who takes the job of caring for an unhappy man ( Sam Claflin ) left paralyzed after being hit by a motorcycle. Expect some swearing (including "s--t," "bitch," "a--hole," and more, though not constantly), some drinking (sometimes to tipsiness), and racy content -- although there's nothing graphic, certain scenes feel very intimate, and there are some passionate kisses and references to sex and a woman's breasts/cleavage. While there are moments of levity and sweetness, the film's tone is a somber overall and sometimes downright tragic. The two main characters learn a lot from each other, especially about opening yourself up to different ways of thinking, but some viewers may find Will and his point of view problematic, since ( spoiler alert ) he feels that life isn't worth living if you're disabled. To stay in the loop on more movies like this, you can sign up for weekly Family Movie Night emails .

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Community Reviews

• Parents say (20)
• Kids say (46)

Based on 20 parent reviews

A missed opportunity to send a positive message instead of a horrible one

Touching but problematic, what's the story.

In ME BEFORE YOU, Will Traynor ( Sam Claflin ) was once a high-powered financier in London who grabbed life by the horns -- but after a motorcycle collision leaves him paralyzed, all he can think of is the pain he feels on a day-to-day basis, and he longs for a permanent escape. Enter Louisa "Lou" Clark ( Emilia Clarke ), a quirky, optimistic former waitress who needs a job to help with her family's finances. Even though she doesn't have any relevant experience, Lou is hired to be Will's companion and caretaker. What she does have is a deep well of kindness and joy, which she taps when she decides she wants to give Will a real reason to live. But can love conquer all?

Is It Any Good?

This movie treads a tricky line, both infuriating and charming viewers. The charm can be chalked up to star Clarke; she makes Lou the type of beguiling creature we've seen in films before who's often known as a "manic pixie dream girl" -- quirky, irreverent, and usually irresistible. Which is also where the infuriation comes in: The MPDG usually serves the function of making a male protagonist feel lightened and leavened, without experiencing much development herself. (All we really know about Lou in the movie is that she's cheery, optimistic, and kind; wears wacky clothing; and dreams of being in fashion in some vague way -- she was more fully developed, tragic back story and all, in the book .)

And then there's the fact that Me Before You feels somewhat manipulative, with its BIG. SAD. FEELINGS. No melancholy moment is left unaccompanied by too-on-the-nose music, no delicate interaction between Lou and Will is spared a close-up. There's also a feeling of condescension toward the have-nots and the disabled. Will is portrayed as fundamentally dissatisfied with a life that -- even though family money affords him comfort and and round-the-clock care -- apparently just isn't good enough because he misses his old life, one that Lou herself (and, by extension, the film) has characterized as shallow. But perhaps most upsetting of all is how, despite all of this, Me Before You works on a certain level. You'll likely cry (in between eye-rolls) and be moved and root for the couple, for Lou, and for the idea of hope and renewed joy.

Talk to Your Kids About ...

Families can talk about how Will is portrayed. Do you find his view of being disabled problematic? Can you see why disabled people might? What do you think about how disabled people are portrayed in the media generally? Do disabled characters tend to come off as stereotypes rather than complex individuals?

How do the characters demonstrate compassion ? Why is that an important character strength?

How does Me Before You handle the class differences between Lou and Will? Does it glamorize the idea of a "good life"? Does it contradict itself in some ways?

Talk about how movies and TV shows sometimes have idealized female characters whose job appears to be to cheer up male characters and show them another way of living. Is this stereotypical/limiting? Is it uplifting? Can it be both?

For those who've read the book, which do you like better, and why? What parts were left out of the movie that you missed? How do you think they impact the story?

Movie Details

• In theaters : June 3, 2016
• On DVD or streaming : August 30, 2016
• Cast : Sam Claflin , Emilia Clarke , Jenna Coleman
• Director : Thea Sharrock
• Inclusion Information : Female directors, Female actors
• Studio : New Line Cinema
• Genre : Drama
• Topics : Book Characters , Friendship
• Character Strengths : Compassion
• Run time : 110 minutes
• MPAA rating : PG-13
• MPAA explanation : thematic elements and some suggestive material
• Last updated : October 13, 2022

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‘Me Before You’ Movie Review – Starring Emilia Clarke and Sam Claflin

You know the story. It’s played out many times before, although not with Me Before You ’s exact ending. Even if you haven’t read the book, just one viewing of the trailer lets you know everything you need to know about Me Before You before you buy a ticket. You can safely assume from the trailers and clips it’s a tearjerker centering on a mismatched couple who will, over the course of two hours, go from irritating the heck out of each other to discovering they’re soulmates. Been there, done that. There’s nothing new to see here, right? Not so fast. What you might not have been able to discern from the trailers is the genuine chemistry between Emilia Clarke as the optimistic, in over her head Lou and Sam Claflin as Will Traynor, a handsome, wealthy business man/extreme sports kind of guy whose life was tragically altered in the blink of an eye.

The romantic drama is based on the bestselling novel by Jojo Moyes who adapted the story for the screen, which should help fans of the book get past the “Hollywood always screws it up” hurdle. The story follows Louisa ‘Lou’ Clark (Emilia Clarke) who, after losing the steady job she depended on to help her parents pay the rent, goes through a series of employment misfires before landing a gig helping Will. Lou has a kooky fashion sense, preferring mismatched outfits consisting of crazy leotards and interesting knitted sweaters to any sort of normal work attire. Will’s initially thrown off not only by Lou’s daily selection of bizarre apparel but also by her perky personality and lack of a filter. She says what’s on her mind and that’s not something Will has experienced much of since the accident that shattered his body. Lou hasn’t had any training in assisting a person with disabilities, but she’s a fairly quick study and with the help of Will’s nurse, Nathan (Stephen Peacocke), she manages to get by when it comes to handling medical issues.

As the days go by, what began as an awkward, almost adversarial relationship transforms into something deeper than a working relationship – and deeper than just a friendship. Lou and Will benefit equally from their time spent together, with Lou developing a new sense of purpose and Will discovering his smile again. But, there’s a reason this one’s labeled a tearjerker…

Clarke and Claflin elevate the material which, although adapted by Moyes, barely scratches the surface of the book. Supporting characters from the book did not make the leap to the screen, and relationships that don’t directly involve either Lou or Will are either lightly touched upon or completely neglected. There’s also a surprising lack of urgency in Lou’s actions in the film that was present (and crucial) in the book after the major plot twist is revealed. And as a fellow critic and book fan pointed out immediately after the screening, the film makes it clear what the answer to the pivotal question will be while the book did a better job of teasing the decision and toying with the readers’ emotions.

Janet McTeer and Charles Dance are terrific as Will’s parents, and Matthew Lewis (best known as Neville Longbottom in the Harry Potter films) is not nearly as obnoxious as Lou’s exercise obsessed boyfriend as the character was in Moyes’ book. Peacocke’s also fine as Nathan, Will’s caretaker/nurse/friend, although the character is purely one-dimensional in the movie.

But, obviously, Me Before You depends on Emilia Clarke and Sam Claflin’s performances to draw you into the story, and both deliver first-rate performances. Clarke in particular is a joy to watch as she nails the quirky, optimistic character while avoiding going overboard on the perkiness. Claflin’s forced into delivering a much more restrained performance and it’s a nice counter-balance to Clarke’s effervescent Lou.

I’d advise you to bring tissues and wear waterproof mascara to Me Before You , and to keep in mind the book and movie are separate creatures. Put aside what you know about the characters from the book and let the film stand on its own. Romantic tearjerkers are few and far between, and you’re not likely to find many better than Me Before You in theaters this year.

MPAA Rating: PG-13 for thematic elements and some suggestive material

Running Time: 110 minutes

Directed By: Thea Sharrock

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Me Before You Film Review – A Little Too Perfect?

Me Before You Review

If you’re most of the population, you’re a sucker for movies like  A Walk to Remember  and therefore, the chance is, you are into  Me Before You.  I mean: a sad, touching-but-light, romantic movie with unbelievably gorgeous and well-loved British actors is one thing. Being based off an excellent book and a trailer with Ed Sheeran music all over it is another level! Sheer perfection, I thought. However, that’s where the movie fell a bit flat for me: it was too perfect and predictable. Was it good? Would I have fought hordes of fangirls to get into that film? Yes, and yes. I was going to compare and contrast the movie and book, but the adaptation of  Me Before You  was so close to the book that I felt that I had already seen it just by having read the book (and, ok, having seen the trailer several times).

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Brief plot summary before I go on:  Me Before You  is about the life of Louisa Clark, a cheerful 27-year-old out of a job when the story begins. Her family needs the money, so she takes a job caring for a wealthy paraplegic – Will Traynor – and they change each other’s lives for the better.

Me Before You begins with the eccentric and sweet Louisa searching for a job in her small town in England and by default taking one caring for a paraplegic. She lives a simple, content life with her family and boyfriend (who is Neville Longbottom, turned hot!). When she gets the job, she at first does not know what to do with the very bitter and sarcastic Will (Sam Claflin), who is paralyzed from an accident. Formerly a business mogul and larger-than-life sportsman, he cannot accept his life now. They start off disliking each other while forced to be in close proximity (the scenes of her spoon-feeding him while they both are clearly uncomfortable well illustrated this) but eventually get to know one another better and fall in love. He encourages her to try new things; she encourages him to try to love life again. Overall, it’s quite cute and enjoyable to watch their witty banter and interaction.Though it was romantic, I did not feel it was primarily a romance. It’s definitely a story of growth: them learning to like each other, him agreeing to try fun things (a concert! Horse racing!) and her agreeing to leave her comfort zone (movies with subtitles! Traveling! Her hilariously awful boyfriend!).

The real highlight of the film, to me, was Emilia Clarke as Louisa. She was spectacular – I could watch her and her eternally upward-arching eyebrows all day (very intrigued to see her in Game of Thrones now, as I imagine Daenerys is a very different character). Her role as a cute, fuzzy-clothing-clad woman living a very simple life was incredibly well played- she’s simply infectious in her charm and warmth with her constant smiles and slight awkwardness. This is the reason she’s hired to care for Will – to inspire him to live life again. Perhaps it’s because I read the book, but I felt the movie did an excellent job of portraying her character – a family girl, content, with fewer horizons. The main change she undergoes after Will is that she realizes there’s more to the world than her job, her lame boyfriend, and her small town and family, and the movie showcases this splendidly.

Sam Claflin was also splendid to watch, for more reasons than one (heh-heh). Though I can’t vouch for how well he played the role of a paraplegic, his one eyebrow cock when he couldn’t turn his head to watch Louisa was consistent and consistently very attractive.

I can’t actually tell if the actors had good chemistry or if everything about them was so picture-perfect that I didn’t care. The dialogue was alright, and it was mostly taken from the book, as the screenplay was written by author Jojo Moyes herself. Essentially, the movie followed the book to the dot, cutting out less important details to condense things for the adaptation. If you enjoyed the book, you would naturally want to see the movie, but you don’t really need to. There’s nothing particularly compelling about it; it has great scenery, good acting, touching scenes, but none of it made me die laughing or sob uncontrollably. I think there were a LOT of high expectations for this movie and it just felt like a sweet, fan-promoted tribute to the book.

MAJOR SPOILER ALERT – About the Romance:

Me Before You  is romantic, but again, I wasn’t consumed by the romance and I don’t think the romance is the main takeaway. I did like how it showed Louisa’s life changing through meeting Will and loving him. They dislike each other at first, then become friends, then are attracted to each other and fall in love, but it is nipped in the bud by Will’s decision to end his life. They kiss a few times, share a few romantic moments at a wedding and on their vacation, but there’s no thunderous true love or passion – this is best demonstrated when Will refuses to live after Louisa’s confession of love. Because she might regret it or pity him and that’s not the love he wants. He loves her, but it’s not enough. (But, perhaps, nothing would be enough.) Louisa is heartbroken but respects his wishes. And so did I (though not everyone in the audience will – so be warned) because the movie did not inspire in me enough emotion to advocate for their true love. It felt like love, an enjoyment of each other’s company, but it was not dramatic enough that I was going to cry buckets of tears upon his death. After this, Louisa goes to Paris and is shown exploring more of the world, sadly remembering Will but overall, happy, and grateful for his presence in her life. I’ll have to read  After You  by Jojo Moyes about Louisa’s life after his death to see how she fares after the ending of this first book, but I think her heart will readily go on.

THOUGHTS ON THE BOOK

Me Before You is a great read – it was engaging, enjoyable, touching, witty, romantic, and thought-provoking with its outlook on euthanasia. I do applaud it’s more unique story and the bittersweet romance. The movie stays incredibly close to the book – a trend with adaptations these days I have noticed more often these days and usually love. Unfortunately, I was underwhelmed by the movie. If you watch the trailer, you’ve basically already seen the best of the movie and the rest of it is rather…nondescript? Predictable? That isn’t to say that I regret going to see it. Emilia Clarke and Sam Claflin tragically falling in love near a beautiful castle is a treat for anyone to watch, but it didn’t quite wrench my heart out.

OVERALL RATING (book & movie):

“Hello, Gorgeous.”

ROMANCE RATING (book & movie):

“Happiness in marriage is entirely a

matter of chance.”

ARE YOU A ROMANCE FAN? FOLLOW THE SILVER PETTICOAT REVIEW:

Amirah Yasin is a lover of persimmons, angst-ridden characters, YA fiction (and all books), Shah Rukh Khan and Colin Firth. In addition to spending her time frequenting YouTube to watch Bollywood songs, attempting to find chances to wear prairie-length skirts, and watching period dramas, she likes to travel, run, play cards and DJ old Indian music. She is a registered nurse as well as an obnoxious snapchat fiend. She enjoys writing idiotic poetry, befriending librarians, and taking photographs of trees. Her elderly patients are the only people known to be fond of her singing voice. She has always loved reading, writing, and romance.

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2 thoughts on “Me Before You Film Review – A Little Too Perfect?”

Despite the fact that I’m not going to LOVE this story (because I like spoilers, and know what I prefer for romances), I will see it when it comes to DVD. Thanks so much for the review, Amirah! Sounds like the cast is good even if the film isn’t 100% great. 🙂

I have only listened to an Audio book of “After you” because it was there at our library. I do like my romances, bit I am not of the more shallow Nicholas Sparks Persuasion. I pretty much grasped the plot of “Me before you” from it’s sequel. Its also not super romantic, but interesting enough. I thought Louisa was a bit of a sop, but hey. And she doesn’t move on easily, but she manages, without wanting to spoil anything. And there are plenty of recurring characters. Thanks for the review. I might watch the movie instead of reading the book, as I often do when the adaptation is very faithful. Is that sacrilege?

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Review: 'Hit Man' is one of the best movies of the year

Oooowee, this is one scorchingly sexy thriller.

Oooowee, "Hit Man" is one scorchingly sexy thriller.

It's also more, a lot more. "Hit Man," now in theaters on its way to Netflix on June 7, is powered by a new leading man who really brings the heat. His name is Glen Powell . You may have seen him hitting the action pedal with Tom Cruise in "Top Gun: Maverick" and then going all swoony-dreamy romantic opposite Sydney Sweeney in "Anyone but You."

But you ain't seen nothing yet. "Hit Man," written by Powell and director Richard Linklater, paints a deceptively comic face on darkness while sealing the deal on Powell as a Paul Newman/Steve McQueen for the 21st century. Such dazzle should not be taken lightly.

Hollywood historians may try to pinpoint the precise moment when Powell became a movie star. It's here, about 15 minutes into "Hit Man," when Powell— playing a nerdy New Orleans philosophy professor—finds his inner cool by taking on bad-boy identities as an undercover hit man for the New Orleans PD. Hire him and the cuffs go on pronto.

Justice triumphs, but for this divorced, stay-at-home, bird-watching, cat laddie who drives a Honda Civic that doesn't know from vroom, it's the rush of playing a pretend badass that becomes an addiction. He's hooked. You will be, too.

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Cheekily billed as a "somewhat true story," the film is based on Gary Johnson, a teacher who really did work undercover. But don't get hung up on facts since "Hit Man" frequently flies off into fantasy. What stays real is Gary teaching his students about the interplay between the id (primal urges) and the superego (morality) and the efforts of the ego to hold them in balance.

Talk about relatable. Gary lets his id flag fly, taking on wigs, fake teeth and accents as, among other fake IDs, a red-headed Brit killer, a stogie-chewing Russian thug and, most importantly as Ron whose swagger grows beyond what a leather jacket and a thousand dollar haircut can provide. "OK, Daniel Day," raves a cop (Retta) who is mightily impressed by his acting.

His students are shocked. "When did our teacher get hot?" When indeed. I'd say when Gary begins to identify more with Ron than himself. It's Ron who attracts Madison, played by the electrifying Adria Arjona, who hires him to off her abusive husband (Evan Holtzman).

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He talks her out of it, which leads to ethical quicksand that only intensifies their intimacy from bedroom to bathtub, resulting in the steamiest R-rated whoopie since the days of basic instincts and fatal attractions. Recently, "Challengers" and "Love Lies Bleeding" suggested that carnality wasn't dead on screen. "Hit Man" really makes the case for the return of cinema sizzle.

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Powell and Arjona, who costarred with boyfriend Jason Momoa in "Sweet Girl," are fire as screen lovers, bringing a hot-damn urgency even to the moments when Gary and Madison allow the truth to invade their love bubble. Who's to blame when her dirtbag husband turns up dead?

Credit the Texas-born Linklater, the world class talent behind such gems as "Slacker," "Dazed and Confused," "School of Rock," "Boyhood" and the sublime trilogy of "Before Sunrise, "Before Sunset" and "Before Midnight." The laughs pop so vividly that at first you might miss the grace notes and the amplitude of Linklater's vision.

Sex on screen hasn't been this fun in years. But you always get a sense of something deeper and dangerous percolating beneath the livewire banter that can't quite disguise the secrets kept by two characters who can't keep their hands off each other.

What is "Hit Man," really? A case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde meet the Nutty Professor? A radical romance that hinges on Freud, Jung and Nietzsche? Or a chance for Powell to prove he's a powerhouse actor able to nail every nuance in a juicy, challenging role?

How about all of the above? Without resorting to spoilers, I'd say go in without preconceptions for one of the best movies of the year, the kind you'll keep running back in your head with a smile that won't quit. How do you resist that? Two words: You don't.

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‘Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga’ Review: George Miller Paves the Way for ‘Fury Road’ with One of the Greatest Prequels Ever Made

David ehrlich.

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Whatever dim but undying hope that Furiosa still maintained for the future would have to be seeded in the same barren Wasteland that had sucked her entire life dry; twice denied the utopia that had been promised to her, Furiosa would have to return to the Citadel from which she had just escaped and claim it for herself. There is no going back, but sometimes you can only find the path forward by looking in the rear-view mirror. Related Stories Denis Villeneuve Thinks We Need Movies That ‘Fully Embrace the Power of the Theater’ Richard Linklater Looks Beyond His 20-Year ‘Merrily We Roll Along’ Project: ‘I See Myself Making a Film When I’m Like 94’

And so it stands to reason that inveterate madman George Miller has followed the most spectacular action movie of the 21st century not with a sequel that continues where “Mad Max: Fury Road” left off (though he hopes to make one of those someday), but rather with a prequel that paves the way to where it began. By the same token, it also stands to reason that Miller hasn’t tried to outdo the orgiastic mayhem that brought his Ozploitation franchise screaming into the 21st century all shiny and chrome — the guy might be insane, but he isn’t stupid. 

Nor is he willing to settle for diminishing returns. Rather than reaching for — and failing to clear — the impossibly high bar that he set for himself, Miller has chosen to do something even crazier and more rewarding: He’s created a symphonic, five-part, decades-spanning revenge saga so immense and self-possessed that it refuses to be seen as the mere extension of another movie, even though it manages to deepen the impact of “Fury Road” at every turn.

Does “Furiosa” deliver the kind of system shock that made its predecessor feel like such a violent rebuke to superhero-era Hollywood? Absolutely not — though its two bonafide setpieces both eclipse the most electric moments of “Fury Road,” while also iterating on them in fantastic new ways (the much-hyped “Stowaway to Nowhere” sequence is an out-of-body experience). But Miller’s decision to shift gears ultimately proves to be his prequel’s greatest strength, even for those of us who might wish that it could end with another 30-car pile-up instead of a proverbial fender-bender. 

Avoiding the same traps that have made too many recent franchise offshoots feel like just less of the same (in part because it was fully written before a frame of “Fury Road” had ever been shot), “Furiosa” doesn’t try to reverse-engineer one of the most propulsive cinematic experiences ever conceived so much as it scours the Wasteland for the emotion that will be required to fuel it. Whereas “Fury Road” was driven by the search for hope, “Furiosa” is a glorious film about why you need it in the first place.

It starts with a simple prompt: “As the world falls around us, how must we brave its cruelties?” Before “Furiosa” is finished with the first of its five distinct chapters, it will begin to offer two competing answers to that question. One is buried within young Furiosa (Alyla Browne, her performance so fierce and hyper-capable you might forget her role is due to be recast an hour later). Kidnapped from her idyllic home as a human map that her captors intend to sell to the nearest warlord (provided they can outrace the girl’s rifle-packing mother across the desert in a muted day-for-night chase that would be the coolest sequence in almost any other movie), Furiosa is instructed never to reveal the location of the Green Place from whence she came. Instead, she’s given a seed of her own to plant somewhere else, though she won’t understand the full implications of that gesture until halfway through the next film, when she realizes the difference between a home and a memory. 

Ruthless but theatrical, Dementus is only scary because you know he’ll take anything and everything he can in order to avoid thinking about what he’s lost. It would have been easy for Miller and his co-writer Nico Lathouris to imagine the main antagonist of this prequel as a mere sub-boss for “Fury Road” baddie Immortan Joe, but “Furiosa” tacks in the opposite direction by making Dementus the most loquacious character in the history of this franchise; by stressing his wayward humanity in a wasteland of inbred power-mongers (the ratty stuffed animal he keeps pinned on the back of his flowing white cape is a dead giveaway). Less motivated to rule than he is to build, Dementus shares Furiosa’s impulse for creation, the only difference being his foolish belief that anything useful might grow out of a world seeded with hate. 

Furiosa has other ideas. She disguises herself as a mute War Boy the first opportunity she gets, and then bides her time for the better part of a decade until she transforms into Anya Taylor-Joy and the chance avails itself to stow away in a War Rig that might lead her away from the Citadel. The driver of that hulking metal beast is a road warrior by the name of Praetorian Jack (“The Souvenir” breakout Tom Burke, one-upping Mel Gibson with just a knowing stare and a thick smudge of black paint across his forehead), and Furiosa senses that he’s capable of enough kindness to help steer her in the right direction. 

This set-up offers plenty of opportunity for the kind of fill-in-the-blank fan service that has made prequels so insufferable, but Miller doesn’t belabor the meet-cute between Furiosa and her twin-action “boom stick,” and even the inevitable reveal of how she loses her left arm is handled with refreshing casualness. To call undue attention to such details in the middle of a life-or-death sprint across the sand dunes would disrupt the rhythm of a film that unfolds with the precision of a symphony (I was often reminded of Park Chan-wook in that regard, especially as “Furiosa” curdles into a maximalist revenge saga), its violence so inextricable from its drama that even its moments of rest tend to vibrate across the screen with the shudder of a 1,000 engines being revved at once.

The virtuosity of Miller’s approach is so arresting that you might not even notice how seldom Furiosa actually speaks; like Charlize Theron before — or after? — her, Taylor-Joy conveys so much strength and desperation through the whites of her eyes alone that words would only cheapen the unparalleled purity of her purpose. That nascent intensity so perfectly matches the established template for the character that Taylor-Joy’s credible resemblance to Theron is just icing on the cake, and the former actress deserves kudos all her own for how willfully she kindles the flame that ignites the latter’s performance. In her hands, Furiosa is reborn as the rare film character who’s become iconic twice over in two distinct (but inseparable) forms, and future generations will awe at the fact that “Fury Road” came first. 

At certain junctures, the expansiveness of “Furiosa” can seem to its detriment, as Miller occasionally speeds over massive plot developments as if they were minor potholes; the life-changing apprenticeship that Praetorian Jack offers Furiosa is resolved in the span of a single fade, while the much-anticipated showdown between Dementus and Immortan Joe is yadda yadda yadda-ed off-screen with the help of some quick narration. Most egregious of all is how the time gaps make it hard to track Dementus and Immortan Joe’s respective relationships to Furiosa, such as they are.

For the most part, however, that such omissions might be misconstrued for oversights is a testament to the richness of this franchise’s lore, just as Miller’s refusal to distract from its heroine’s single-minded focus is ultimately to the benefit of a movie that sees chaos as Furiosa’s greatest chance to look for home, and not — as Dementus might conceive of it — as a home unto itself. 

Her quest to avenge her mother’s death is what drives this story, but that’s not what makes it worth telling. “Furiosa” derives its inestimable horsepower from how it forces its heroine to watch Dementus’ motorcycle horde ride in circles for 15 years, killing themselves and countless others in a futile bid to control a part of an irradiated Wasteland we already know they won’t be able to keep. Each new indignity brings her closer to accepting that going nowhere with hope is better than going anywhere without it.

How do we brave the world’s cruelties? By refusing to become them ourselves. Such an internally combusting prequel might seem like a strange lead-in to a movie that spit fire in every direction, but don’t you worry: George Miller still has what it takes to make it epic. 

Warner Bros. will release “Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga” in theaters on Friday, May 24.

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Nicole Brown Simpson's sisters remember her 'adventurous' spirit before she met O.J. Simpson

What do you remember about “the trial of the century” when athlete-turned-actor O.J. Simpson stood accused of a double murder committed nearly 30 years ago, on June 12, 1994, and was acquitted?

Do you envision Johnnie Cochran, defense attorney for the Heisman trophy-winning running back and first-round NFL draft pick, telling a jury that if a glove found at the scene of the fatal stabbings “doesn’t fit, you must acquit” ? Do you return to Simpson’s blood being found on the rear gate of his ex-wife’s Brentwood, California, townhouse, and the victims’ blood discovered in Simpson's infamous white Bronco? Do you recall gasping at the verdict watched live by an estimated 150 million people, or do you think of Nicole Brown Simpson and her friend Ron Goldman , whose lives were savagely and abruptly ended that summer night?

Nicole’s younger sister, Dominique Brown, remembers the 1995 proceedings becoming a spectacle.

“The course of the trial became such a circus and such a fiasco that (the verdict) wasn't a surprise,” she says. Her oldest sister Denise Brown agrees. “It wasn't a surprise. You're right.” Tanya Brown, the youngest of Juditha and Louis Brown’s children, also joins her sisters for an interview about Lifetime’s upcoming docuseries “ The Life & Murder of Nicole Brown Simpson ” (Saturday and Sunday at 8 EDT/PDT). The four-hour docuseries gives viewers a better understanding of Nicole, through home movies, photographs, and recollections from her sisters and friends, including Kris Jenner , Faye Resnick and Brian "Kato" Kaelin . Melissa Moore (“ The Prison Confessions of Gypsy Rose Blanchard ”) and Jesse Daniels (“ Surviving R. Kelly ”) are executive producers.

What we learned covering O.J. Simpson case: We hardly know the athletes we think we know

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Producers offered a “level of trust and this level of confidence that they could portray Nicole and humanize her, versus being just a victim or … someone that didn't have a voice, wasn't represented during the trial,” Dominique says.

During the proceedings, Simpson's defense sought to disparage Nicole.

Nicole and her friends "would go out two, three, four nights a week and stay out until 5:00 in the morning,” Cochran told the jury, as seen in footage from the docuseries. “They’d go out dancing. They’d do whatever they would do. We know Faye Resnick was using drugs in this period of time.”

Denise says hearing the defense’s portrayal of her sister, who died at 35, felt “horrible, absolutely horrible.”

“I didn't understand who the person was that they were talking about because it certainly wasn't Nicole. And that's why I'm so glad that we are doing this documentary so that people actually get to know who Nicole is.”

“There was so much life in this girl,” Denise remembers. “For the first 18 years of her life, she was adventurous. She was like, ‘Come on, let's have a party! Come on, let's go here! Come on, let's get all the kids together! Let's have fun!'”

The first sign of trouble the family witnessed

Nicole met Simpson at age 18 in 1977 while working at The Daisy restaurant in Beverly Hills. The athlete, 12 years older, was still married to his first wife, Marguerite Whitley, with whom he had three children over 12 years.

When Nicole and Simpson first began dating, she was “definitely in love,” Dominique recalls. “It's all she talked about, and she had a different glow about her.”

The Kardashians' connections to O.J. Simpson explained

But eight months into the relationship, Denise witnessed the first signs of trouble. Nicole invited her family to see Simpson play an NFL game, and he became upset that Nicole greeted a friend of theirs with a kiss on the cheek.

“I thought, my God, we're European. We kiss on the cheek. We kiss everybody all the time,” Denise says. “When we got back to the house, all hell broke loose, and she was like, ‘I hate him! I hate him! I hate him!’"

Shortly afterward, it seemed all was forgiven, Denise says, recalling Nicole said “Everything's OK. I embarrassed him.’”

A repeated pattern of violence: 'You beat the holy hell out of me'

Simpson and Nicole married in 1985 and had their daughter Sydney that year and son Justin in 1988. But the troubles between them only continued. Nicole documented Simpson’s abuse in pictures she kept in a safety deposit box and her diary. "I wanted to be a wonderful wife…but you made me feel so ugly,” Nicole w rote . “You beat the holy hell out of me. … I hated you so much."

On New Year’s Day in 1989, police visited the Simpson house, reportedly on their ninth trip to the residence for a domestic disturbance. A report from the Los Angeles Police Department obtained by the Los Angeles Times said that when police arrived at their North Rockingham Avenue house, Nicole jumped out of the bushes with bruises and scratches on her body, and told officers, “He’s going to kill me.”

Nicole found 'freedom' in separating from O.J., but he allegedly began stalking her

She filed for divorce in 1992 after seven years of marriage, and a weight lifted, Dominique says. “It was a freedom. It was a carefree-ness. It was something that I hadn't seen in her since she had been on the beach as a teenager."

But Simpson couldn’t accept that Nicole wanted to move on and began stalking her, Nicole told her therapist . “She used to say, ‘O.J.'s trying to scare me again so that I go back to him,’" Dominique remembers.

“The same thing happened the last night we were together,” Denise says of the celebratory dinner that followed Sydney’s dance recital, just hours before the killings. The family dined at Mezzaluna, where Goldman waited tables.

“We were having dinner, all of us, and then all of a sudden," Denise says, and Nicole points out O.J. "'There he goes.’ And he was just driving by.”

OJ Simpson's trial exposed America's racial divide. Three decades later, what's changed?

Just a few hours later, Nicole’s neighbors discovered her and Goldman’s bodies outside her home.

Following her death, 'Nicole has made a difference'

Tanya and Denise believe Simpson committed the murders. Dominique politely refuses to offer her opinion to protect her relationship with Justin and Sydney and hesitated to participate in the docuseries.

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Simpson died in April at 76 from prostate cancer, but that "does not bring Nicole back,” Denise says. “Him passing away does not take the pain away from us of losing our sister.”

The docuseries , at least, lets the sisters share a true portrayal of their vivacious, spirited Nicole.

“I'm really proud of being part of it,” Tanya says, before praising her late sister for acting as a warning to others experiencing domestic abuse. “I still get emails or messages from people saying, ‘If it wasn't for your sister, I'd be dead.’ Nicole has made a difference.”

10 Sci-Fi and Horror Movies to Stream Before They Leave Netflix

Act fast: you have only weeks (or in some cases, days) to watch these titles, including the Hunger Games and A Nightmare on Elm Street series, on Netflix.

While Netflix and its streaming rivals love to trumpet what’s coming soon , they’re understandably less vocal about which movies are shuffling out of their libraries. Netflix, at least, adds a little badge to certain popular titles warning you that they’re “leaving soon.” Here are 10 sci-fi and horror suggestions (plus some sequels too) to catch before they make their Netflix exits .

The Hunger Games

Only Katniss Everdeen maneuvering her way around Panem would understand stakes this sky-high: The Hunger Games , Catching Fire , and Mockingjay - Part 1 and Part 2 are all departing the Netflix arena May 31.

The end of the world arrives May 31—at least, it will feel like that if you delay watching master of disaster Roland Emmerich ’s 2009 flick starring John Cusack, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Woody Harrelson, Thandiwe Newton, Danny Glover (as the POTUS), and a killer giant earthquake-tsunami combo. Watch on Netflix .

Last year’s Patrick Wilson-directed series entry The Red Door is sticking around the streamer for now, but if you want to watch James Wan’s 2010 original that started it all, don’t dilly-dally in the Further. Insidious is leaving May 31.  Watch on Netflix .

Silent Hill

Based on the popular video game franchise, the first live-action Silent Hill film—released in 2006 and starring Radha Mitchell as desperate mother Rose—vanishes into a supernatural dimension, or at least departs Netflix, on May 31.  Watch on Netflix .

Audiences might not have flooded theaters to see Anya Taylor-Joy’s latest offering this past weekend , but you can take in her 2016 match-up against an unhinged James McAvoy in this M. Night Shyamalan-directed thriller without getting off the couch. If you act by May 31, that is. Watch on Netflix .

The Invitation

You are cordially invited to watch this Dracula -inspired tale about an American artist (Nathalie Emmanuel) who travels to England to meet long-lost relatives, only to discover her glamorously gothic family has a bloodthirsty secret. It leaves June 23.  Watch on Netflix .

Firestarter

Mark L. Lester’s 1984 Stephen King adaptation stars Drew Barrymore as a little girl you do not want to piss off. It’s leaving June 30, according to the New York Times . Watch on Netflix .

Gareth Edwards ’ 2014 kaiju kicked off Legendary’s Monsterverse—a franchise that’s still going strong with March’s Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire . See where this version of the Godzilla saga began before it departs June 30, according to the New York Times . Watch on Netflix .

The Meg 2: The Trench

It may not have been as good as the first Meg , but summer seems like the prime time to watch Jason Statham fight a really giant shark (again). Alas, it’s leaving Netflix June 28, according to Yahoo . Watch on Netflix .

A Nightmare on Elm Street

You weren’t going to dare going to sleep anyway, right? So now’s the perfect time to watch the original A Nightmare on Elm Street , plus sequels  A Nightmare on Elm Street 2: Freddy’s Revenge , A Nightmare on Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors , A Nightmare on Elm Street 4: The Dream Master , and A Nightmare on Elm Street 5: The Dream Child — all leaving June 30, according to the New York Times .

Get Your Trash On! Where To Buy Tickets for 'Haikyu: The Dumpster Battle'

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When is the release date for 'haikyu the dumpster battle', is 'haikyu the dumpster battle' in theaters, find showtimes for haikyu the dumpster battle, watch the trailer for haikyu the dumpster battle, is 'haikyu the dumpster battle' the end of 'haikyu', do you need to watch the 'haikyu' series before 'the dumpster battle'.

After the end of the hit volleyball anime series in 2020, Haikyu!! fans can rejoice once again as the franchise is getting its first feature film, Haikyu!! The Dumpster Battle . Picking up from the end of Haikyu!! Season 4, the movie focuses on the rivalry between Karasuno High and Nekoma High as it reaches its crescendo in a high-stakes stadium match at the Tokyo Nationals. The rivalry between the two schools has been an important part of the franchise’s story from the beginning and this match is something the show has been building to since its very first arc.

Haikyu!! is a massively popular sports anime series based on the equally popular manga of the same name by Haruichi Furudate . The franchise follows a young boy, Shoyo Hinata ( Ayumu Murase ), who dreams of becoming the greatest volleyball player in the world despite his short stature. The anime series premiered in 2014 and ran for four seasons, wrapping up its final season in 2020. At the end of the show, however, there were still a lot of chapters of the manga left to cover, and that’s why the franchise is now heading to the big screen. The new movie is the first installment in a two-part film series that will wrap up the story of the anime, collectively titled Haikyu!! Final .

Check out the guide below to learn about the film’s showtimes at your nearest theater and when and where you can watch Haikyu!! The Dumpster Battle .

Haikyu!! The Dumpster Battle will in the US and Canada on Friday, May 31, 2024 . The movie was originally released in Japan on February 16, 2024. The official date (and title) for the second part of the final film is yet to be announced, so watch this space for the latest updates.

The film’s international rollout is already underway, per the following schedule

Yes, Haikyu!! The Dumpster Battle will be premiering exclusively in theaters when it arrives in North America on May 31. The film is being distributed in the US by Crunchyroll and Sony and is expected to be released as both a subtitled version with the original Japanese audio and a dubbed version with English audio. There’s no word yet on when Haikyu!! The Dumpster Battle will arrive on streaming in the US. So, for the time being, the only way you can watch Haikyu!! The Dumpster Battle in North America is to catch in theaters when it premieres.

Haikyu!! The Dumpster Battle has been having an extremely successful theatrical run in Japan, debuting at number one at the Japanese box office and grossing over ¥10 billion (about $60 million). It’s already the most successful anime film of the year in Japan and one of the highest-earning anime films of all time. It looks like Sony and Crunchyroll are hoping to replicate that success by releasing it in theaters across international territories. Considering the success of movies like Demon Slayer: Hashira Training and One Piece Film: Red at the US box office , the same strategy is likely to work out for the Haikyu!! final films as well.

Check out the links below to find out the US showtimes for Haikyu!! The Dumpster Battle , book tickets, and get more details about the hit anime movie finale before watching it at your nearest theater.

Crunchyroll released the English subtitled trailer for Haikyu!! The Dumpster Battle on April 24, 2024. At just short of two minutes long, the video presents a quick preview of the action to come and gives us a taste of the film’s beautifully animated match sequences. The trailer opens with the first meeting between Shoyo Hinata (Ayumu Murase) and Kenma Kozume (Yuki Kaji), making it clear right from the beginning that their connection and friendly rivalry will be the key focus of The Dumpster Battle . The video then recalls the promise of a final, decisive match between Karasuno High and Nekoma High, which will take place not in an actual dumpster but at the prestigious Tokyo Nationals tournament. In their previous clash, Karasuno lost to Nekoma, but this time around, they’re more determined than ever to balance the record in front of a national audience. Being a Shōnen anime , the film, as the trailer teases, will have several intense scenes of these talented young athletes in action as well as heartwarming moments between both sides. The stakes and energy have never been higher, and if the trailer is any indication, fans are in for an exciting blend of sports action and heartfelt moments, showcasing the indomitable spirit of these fierce and young players . Will the Crows finally beat the Cats? You’ll just have to wait and find out when you watch Haikyu!! The Dumpster Battle .

Almost, but not quite. As mentioned earlier, The Dumpster Battle is the first half of a two-part film series collectively titled Haikyu!! Final . The two movies together make up the final installment of the franchise, wrapping up this epic sports anime once and for all. Unfortunately, the release date and title of Haikyu!! Final ’s second part is yet to be announced, but we do have some idea what it will be about. Haikyu!! The Dumpster Battle adapts Chapters 291 to 325 of the Haikyu!! manga series, which has a total of 402 chapters. That leaves a good portion of the manga’s second-last arc, which follows Karasuno High making their way to the Tokyo Nationals, and the Final Arc, which is set several years after high school and shows Hinata returning to Japan after extensive training in Brazil, hoping to become a professional Division 1 player and prove just how good he really is. So, there’s plenty of content from the manga to be adapted for the final film. The only question is whether they’ll be able to fit everything in one movie.

In order to get the full story, it is recommended that you watch the Haikyu!! anime series before watching Haikyu!! The Dumpster Battle . While there are a lot of anime films based on shows that work as standalone entries in the franchise, that’s not the case with this one. Haikyu!! The Dumpster Battle and its upcoming sequel are intended as the finale of the series, so the best way to watch it is after you finish all episodes of the show. The Haikyu!! anime series consists of 85 episodes split into four seasons . All four seasons of Haikyu!! are available for streaming in the US on Crunchyroll .

Additionally, if you would rather watch in longer installments than episode-by-episode, the series’ first three seasons have also been collected into four compilation films: Haikyu!! The Movie: The End and the Beginning and Haikyu!! The Movie: Winners and Losers , which together cover Season 1; Haikyu!! Genius and Sense , which covers Season 2, and Haikyu!! Battle of Concepts , which covers Season 3. While the compilation films offer an easy way to catch up on the show, there are some things omitted from the series and other parts that were added specifically for the compilations. Of the four compilation films, The End and the Beginning & Winners and Losers aren’t available for streaming in the US at the moment, but the other three movies are all currently on Netflix, with Genius and Sense also streaming on Crunchyroll.

Godzilla Vs. Kong's Screenwriter Tried To Bring Mechagodzilla Into An Earlier Film

G odzilla has always been super cool, but what about a Godzilla that's actually a mechsuit? Well, Mechagodzilla was originally intended as an antithesis for the king of monsters, representing attempts to squash a force of nature that wreaks havoc or acts as a benevolent mediator, depending on who you ask. The Gundam version of Godzilla first appeared in 1974's "Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla," where a bunch of aliens from Black Hole Planet 3 built a massive robot monster to destroy Godzilla and take over the planet. After thwarted attempts to take down the OG prehistoric beast, humans took matters into their own hands to craft a high-endurance, super-powerful cyborg in 2002's "Godzilla Against Mechagodzilla," who teamed up with other beasts like Mothra to put Godzilla down (and failed).

Coming to the MonsterVerse, Mechagodzilla made its first appearance in Adam Wingard's "Godzilla vs. Kong," where the mecha is controlled telepathically by Ren Serizawa (Shun Oguri), who is guided by a twisted notion to protect Earth by overthrowing Godzilla's title of apex predator. Things take an unexpected turn when Mechagodzilla is taken over by Ghidorah's consciousness (whose remains were used to build the suit), and this leads to several casualties, and an almost-defeated Godzilla. Thanks to Kong, whose arrival allows Godzilla to overpower the suit , the day is saved, putting an end to human ambitions to override the power structure that has been in place since Godzilla's birth.

MonsterVerse writer Max Borenstein, who has worked on all the films in the franchise — except the latest "Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire"  — told Syfy  that there was an attempt to introduce the Gundam beast in an earlier film, namely 2019's "Godzilla: King of the Monsters."

Read more: The 95 Best Horror Movies Ever

We Could Have Had Mechagodzilla In King Of The Monsters

"Godzilla: King of the Monsters" hones in on the awakening of the Titans around the world, leading to an uncharacteristic team-up between Godzilla and Mothra to fight Ghidorah and Rodan. The return of these popular beasts should have contributed to this entry's appeal, but a poor, shaky script, along with an utter lack of visual splendor (that is even mildly interesting) squashes the potential of the premise. While Mechagodzilla's premise might have not salvaged these missteps, it could have been interesting to witness the motivations behind the people controlling the suit in a decisive showdown between monsters.

Borenstein explained how the process of introducing Mechagodzilla came to be:

"It took a lot of tinkering to get it to work. Initially, in my first draft of 'Godzilla: [King of the Monsters]', the piece that was in my version was Mechagodzilla appearing in that film. They punted that, but ultimately it was cool to see it re-emerge when I came back in on 'Godzilla vs. Kong'. It made a lot of sense to be there because then you have these two iconic adversaries, but neither one is a villain. So let's introduce an iconic villain."

Borenstein also explained why Mechagodzilla is such a great character, as his presence leads Kong and Godzilla to directly aid humans in "Godzilla vs. Kong," despite the fact that "these creatures are really not representational of human agency." Although this is a world ultimately ruled by monsters, where humans are "expendable amongst the insanity," Mechagodzilla allows disempowered humans to fight the monsters head-on, even if the motivations behind such urges are convoluted. After all, Mechagodzilla will always be powered either by conscience or a complete absence of it, depending on the person faux-piloting the ginormous metal suit.

Read the original article on SlashFilm